Warmth is finally here! And with the warmth come the sprouting of the asparagus. I am forever grateful to my parents for planting the asparagus patch so many years ago. It is an amazing perennial for cold climates because it actually needs the cold in order to become fully dormant over the winter. It is a beautiful thing. But enough about botany, this post is all about risotto! I could honestly eat risotto everyday, no matter the time of year. This risotto is nice and light and springy, made with asparagus and chives fresh from the garden. Steve and I snarfed it up after a nice shredded carrot and vinaigrette salad. Yes, we had an actual vegetable course. WOOT!
It all starts by chopping an onion and about 3 cloves of garlic into a fine mince. Saute them in a nice large, shallow pan with about 4 Tablespoons of butter and 1 Tablespoon of olive oil. Add in a sprinkle of salt and cook until they are nice and softened. Then add in your cup and a half of arborio rice and saute until it is almost slightly golden.
Then add in a 1/4 cup of wine and stir, stir, stir until the rice absorbs it all. Then add in ladle-fulls of warm broth, stirring vigorously after each ladle is added. I put my asparagus stems into the broth while it was heating to give it a nice aspargusy flavor. You will need close to 6 cups of broth. This night I used beef so my risotto is a little darker, but vegetable broth would be the ideal!
When the rice is close to being done, add in chopped asparagus. you don’t want to over cook these babies.
When the rice is al dente add in one more ladle of broth, 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese, and one more tablespoon of butter. Turn off the heat, stir quickly, and cover for 1-2 minutes so it can “set.” Then you will have reached perfect risotto consistency!
Top with chopped chives and more cheese and you are in risotto heaven 🙂
- 5 Tablespoons butter
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion, diced
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 1/2 cups arborio rice
- 1/4 cup white wine, room temperature
- 6 cups of vegetable broth
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 6 asparagus stalks, chopped
- chives, chopped
- Heat 4 tablespoons of butter and the olive oil in a large, shallow pot.
- Stir in the onions and garlic and cook until softened.
- Stir in the rice until slightly golden.
- Stir in the white wine until absorbed into the rice.
- Stir in about 1/2 cup of broth at a time, stirring vigorously after each addition, until most has been absorbed into the rice. Keep heat at a medium, to medium low temperature.
- When the rice is almost complete, add in the asparagus.
- When the rice is al dente, add in another ladle full of broth, 1 tablespoon of butter, and the cheese. Stir quickly, remove from heat and cover for 1-2 minutes, to set.
- Enjoy risotto topped with chives!
I'm a country girl at heart. I tried living in the city and it just didn't work. Welcome to my ramblings as a teacher and wife. 
Hey beautiful! Just found your site. I was hungry when I started but now I am famished. I am going to try a lot of these recipes.
You are such a good cook and a great person. Thanks for sharing.
Joyce
I am so glad it made you hungry!!! 🙂 You are lovely <33