1. Fold the spinach leaves in half and tear
out the stems. Wash the leaves in several changes of water,
drain and shred them.
2. Heat the stock in a saucepan and keep it
warm at the side of the stove. Melt half the butter in a shallow
saucepan or casserole, add the onion and sauté 2 to 3 minutes
until soft. Stir in the carrots, leek and celery with salt and
pepper and continue cooking, stirring often, until they are
nearly tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in the rice and sauté it,
stirring constantly, until it absorbs the butter and looks
transparent, about 2 minutes. Add the wine and boil until it is
almost all evaporated.
3. Moisten the rice with 1 to 2 ladlefuls of
hot stock, stir in the spinach and simmer the risotto, stirring
gently but constantly, until the rice starts to get dry. Add
more stock and continue cooking, stirring all the time and
adding the stock in batches, until the rice is very tender and
creamy from the starch which has begun to leach from the grains.
This will take 20 to 25 minutes and don't hesitate to use plenty
of stock.
4. Take the risotto from the heat, add the
remaining butter in pieces and stir it into the rice as it
melts. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Serve the risotto in
shallow bowls, sprinkled with parsley. Risotto is best served at
once, though it can be kept warm for a few minutes. If
necessary, soften it with a little more stock just before
serving.
What Wine:
To Cook: You might be surprised to learn that rice, not
pasta, is the staple starch of northwestern Italy,. Local white
wines are in short supply. Don't despair. Piedmont provides good
corteses and chardonnays suitable for making this dish; and
Lombardy's Oltrepo Pavese district also makes fine still and
sparkling whites based on the pinot grigio grape.
To
Drink: Any of the above wines will work admirably at table.
If you are smitten with spring fever, consider a faintly
sparkling moscato d'Asti (not to be confused with Asti Spumante)
from the heart of Piedmont. Like most muscat-based wines, it is
rather sweet, but no wine has a more vernal bouquet.
This Recipe of the Month
selection comes from Anne Willan's newest release: Anne
Willan Cooking With Wine (2001) published by Harry N.
Abrams, Inc. in association with COPIA: American Center for
Wine, Food, and the Arts.
