When I was a postdoc at UCSF, a group of us would get together every week for movie night. The responsibility for movie selection was rotated amongst the regular attendees but the location was pretty constant: our place or Nima's (because most other people lived too far or their place was too small). We watched some incredible movies (Twelve Years a Slave), some truly awful films (I've blocked their names out), and went through an Oscar's phase that left me with the Frozen soundtrack stuck in my head even before my friends' kids started singing Let It Go on constant repeat.
Since we were a group of food lovers, dinner, drinks and dessert were all an important part of Movie Night. We usually ordered take out and someone made dessert to share, but every so often some daft soul would volunteer to cook for all of us.
Nima made an incredible kuku sabzi that I still need to share here. Maike made a special German holiday beverage to match a movie we watched with the same title. Matthias made an incredible pear and Gorgonzola risotto, after which I spent the next four years begging for his recipe. When he eventually shared it with me, it was something like, make a risotto, at the end, stir in crumbled Gorgonzola and decorate with peeled ripe pear slices. It was a very un-Swiss recipe. I tried recreating it at home, but it just wasn't as good as I remembered and I decided to move on.
Then, some embarrassingly long while ago, Carol voted for the blue cheese risotto from the Chelsea Market Cookbook. I didn't immediately make it because Caleb and I were trying to eat more greens, and my failure to get around to making this risotto kept popping into my head every once in a while, until finally... the time was right. Caleb's parents are here visiting, which meant I could catch up on trying some recipes I'd slacked on until now.
This blue cheese risotto with mushrooms isn't quite the same as that lingering memory of Gorgonzola pear risotto, but it's still delicious, rich but not overly so, and ultra comforting in the way that all great fall/winter/early spring risottos must be.
I've modified the recipe just a smidge, mostly because I believe a splash of wine or vermouth can only ever improve a rice dish.
Original source: Chelsea Market Cookbook.
Ingredients
For the mushrooms:
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 8 ounces (225 grams) fresh shiitake mushrooms caps sliced
- 4 ounces (115 grams) fresh cremini mushrooms sliced
- ¼ cup (40 grams; one small) shallot finely chopped
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
For the risotto:
- 5-6 cups low-sodium chicken or vegetable stock
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ cup (80 grams; one large) shallot finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 ¼ cup (225 grams) Arborio rice
- ½ cup dry white wine or Vermouth
- ¼ cup (60 mL) heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- ½ cup (60 grams; 2 ounces) firm blue cheese crumbled
For serving (optional)
- ¼ cup chopped fresh chives
- ½ cup grated Parmesan
Instructions
For the mushrooms:
- In a large saute pan, melt the butter over medium-high heat.
- Add the sliced mushrooms (both varieties) and cook, stirring occasionally, until the juices of the mushrooms begin to evaporate and the mushrooms start to brown.
- Stir in the finely minced shallots, season with salt and pepper, and continue cooking another 2-3 minutes.
- Remove the pan from the heat, set aside, and cover to keep the mushrooms warm.
For the risotto:
- In a medium saucepan, bring the stock to a simmer and keep warm over very-low heat.
- In a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan or Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the shallots, season with the salt and pepper, and continue cooking for 1-2 minutes, stirring frequently, until they are softened but not browned.
- Add the rice and stir almost constantly, until it turns chalky white, about 3 minutes. Do not let the rice brown.
- Stir in the wine and simmer until the wine has almost evaporated, about 1-2 minutes.
- Add ¾ cup of warm stock and stir until almost completely absorbed, about 2 minutes. Continue with remaining stock, adding ½ cup at a time, and allowing each addition to be absorbed, until the rice is barely tender to the bite and the mixture is loose and creamy, about 20 to 25 minutes. [If you run out of stock before the risotto is fully cooked, use very hot water in its place.]
- Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in the butter and cream, followed by the blue cheese.
- Taste and season with additional salt and pepper as required.
- Divide the risotto among shallow soup bowls. Top each serving with the warm mushrooms and a sprinkle of chives.
- Serve immediately, with extra Parmesan on the side.
