Got Mushrooms? Cheesy Chanterelle Risotto Is For You

Every week, we spotlight a different food blogger who’s shaking up the blogosphere with tempting recipes and knockout photography. Below, Eva Kosmas Flores of Adventures in Cooking whips up a woodsy, mushroom-filled risotto swirled with creamy Parmesan and Gruyère.

Photo: Eva Kosmas Flores

I was able to transport a shoebox full of chanterelles back to Los Angeles and knew what I wanted to make with my haul for several weeks prior: a tasty risotto. I’d make Greek rice pudding and savory Korean rice porridges before, but I’d never tried my hand at making risotto. As it turns out, the cooking process is very similar to both of those things. It basically involves boiling rice in too much liquid so that it gets nice and soft and mushy. But the key is to keep stirring the post regularly so that none of the rice mixture burns onto the bottom of the pan.

Chanterelle Mushroom Risotto

3 tablespoons butter
5 shallots, thinly sliced
3 tablespoons olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
3 cups chopped chanterelles (can substitute button mushrooms)
2 cups arborio rice
1 cup white wine
6 cups chicken or vegetable stock
2/3 cup cream
1/3 cup grated Parmesan
2/3 cup grated Gruyère
1 teaspoon thyme
? teaspoon oregano
? to ? teaspoon salt, to taste
? teaspoon pepper

First caramelize the shallots: Melt the butter in a medium-sized frying pan over medium heat. Add the shallots and stir to coat in the butter. Reduce the heat to low. Continue cooking them until they turn golden brown (about 40 minutes), stirring every 10 minutes and more frequently towards the end of cooking to keep them from sticking to the bottom of the pan. Remove from heat and set aside.

In a large pot, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and sauté for 5 minutes, then add the mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes more. Add the rice and stir constantly for 2 minutes, then add the wine and 2 cups of the stock. Continue cooking and stirring until most of the stock is absorbed, then add another cup of stock and keep stirring until it is mostly absorbed. Repeat this process until you have used all the stock. Once the risotto is thick and creamy, add the caramelized shallots, cream, cheeses, herbs, and spices and stir until incorporated and all the cheese has melted. Remove from heat and taste, add more salt if necessary. Serve immediately.

More cheesy dishes:

Southern Staple: Pimento Cheese

Pesto Swirl from ‘Better on Toast’

Baked Chile Rellenos Recipe From ‘Sweet Life