Hi all, as mentioned in the "butternut squash" thread, I have this amazing recipe that I wanted to share with you all. the recipe came from an old Italian cooking magazine. I have been making it for years and sort of eyeball the quantities, but here' what it looks like:
4 cups vegetable broth
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup shallots, finely minced
1 cups Arborio rice
1 cup dry white wine
2 ripe pears, peeled, cored and cut into 1/4 inch dice
4 ounces taleggio cheese, rind removed and cubed
2 tablespoons chopped roasted almonds
The pears should be of a firm variety (bosc, for instance). A soft variety (like Bartlett) will result in a mushy dish.
First, peal and core the pears and poach them in a bit of broth for a few minutes. Let them cool and dice them. Then dice the Taleggio in very small bits.
Then make your risotto as you normally would.
When the last addition of broth is almost all incorporated, add the diced pears; cook 1-2 minutes. Add the Taleggio. Stir quickly until the cheese melts and the rice has a moist, creamy consistency. Season to taste and serve, sprinkle with almond shavings and maybe some Italian parsley, and voilà!
Notes:
1-This may seem like it's a dessert, but it really isn't. You can serve it as a side dish with pork (great combination: pork, pear, Taleggio, almonds...hmmm!). I suppose it could be a dessert-ricotto if you don't all the shallots.
2-Chicken broth works too, but veggie broth is better, in my opinion, because it's lighter and doesn't compete with the other flavors.
3-Sprinkling Parmaggiano on top is optional. I do, because it adds a little saltiness to this sweet dish. And I love Parmaggiano!
4-Taleggio is a bit pricy (well, here in Canada), but you really don't need that much for this risotto.
Enjoy!
Christian
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