In California winter can transition to spring in a flash. It seems like yesterday we were beset by chilly storms while the forecast for this week is all sunny and 70s.
Daffodils are blooming, as are cherry trees, and the truest test of spring, asparagus in the market can be found for less than $2 a pound.
I just couldn’t resist these at the market today, and cooked them up into a creamy risotto. This recipe is a classic asparagus risotto recipe.
You can easily dress it up with some lemon zest, lump crab meat, green onions, truffle salt, fresh thyme or chopped mint.
This risotto we’ve made on the loose side, which is why we are serving it in a bowl. When making risotto you get to decide how loose you want it. Just stop adding liquid when the risotto gets to the consistency you like!
Asparagus Risotto Recipe
If you want to make this a vegetarian dish, use vegetable stock or water instead of the chicken stock.
Ingredients
- About 4 cups chicken stock (or vegetable stock for vegetarian option)
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter, divided
- 1/2 cup chopped shallots
- 1 cup arborio rice
- 1/4 cup dry white wine (or 1 Tbsp lemon juice and 3 Tbsp water)
- 1/2 pound asparagus, trimmed, tips cut off, tough skins of the spears peeled (if working with thick apparatus spears), and the spears cut into thin disks
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- Salt and pepper
If cooking gluten-free, use gluten-free stock.
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