Spring Onion Risotto

Risotto is one of my favorite things to make, watching it come together in one pan is such a satisfying journey with a delicious outcome. It works well as an entrée or a side dish and once you get the basics down, it’s a formula that you can recreate over and over again with whatever you have available. I love going to the farmer’s market and buying seasonal produce that I wouldn’t normally include on my grocery list. Last week, I was attracted to a beautiful pile of spring onions, the result is this savory pasta dish.

Serves 4.

·      1 tablespoon olive oil

·      4 ounces bacon- diced

·      2 large spring onions

·      ½ cup dry white wine

·      1 1/2 cups Arborio rice

·      5 cups chicken broth-warm

·      1 cup freshly grated parmesan

·      2 tablespoons butter

·      Salt

·      Freshly ground black pepper

1.     Clean and trim the spring onions separating the green tops. Halve and thinly slice the white bottoms.

2.     Heat olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add bacon and cook until lightly brown, about 3 minutes.

3.     Add sliced green onion to the pan and cook until soft, about 5 minutes.

4.     Once the green onion has softened, add the Arborio rice to the pan and stir to toast for 1 minute. Add the white wine to the pan and deglaze, scraping any fond from the bottom of the pan.

5.     Once the white wine has reduced by half begin to add the chicken broth a half cup at a time.  Stir constantly while simmering over medium low heat until most of the liquid has been absorbed, then add another half cup of broth. Repeat this process until you’ve used all of the chicken broth and the rice is tender.

6.     Turn off the heat and season with salt and pepper to taste. Add parmesan and butter stirring until combined. Serve warm.