Walnut Risotto with Sage

Patience, Walnuts, and Warm Earth

Risotto is one of the few dishes that asks something of you — not skill, exactly, but presence. You stay close to the pot, you stir, you listen. This version moves toward something quieter and more autumnal than a classic, where the earthiness of walnuts and the resinous whisper of sage settle into each slow ladle of broth. There is something almost meditative about it. The kind of dish that rewards you not just at the table, but in the making.

Ingredients

• 6 cups chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons Alessi Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1/2 onion, finely minced
• 1/2 teaspoons Alessi Garlic Puree
• 1 1/2 cups Alessi Arborio Rice
• 1/2 cups dry white wine
• 3/4 cups walnuts, chopped
• 1 tablespoon fresh sage, chopped
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan Cheese
• Alessi Sea Salt and Ground Black Pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Heat chicken broth in a medium sized pot.
2. In a separate 4 quart heavy bottomed saucepan, heat butter and olive oil, add onion and sauté until transparent.
3. Stir in garlic.
4. Add Arborio rice and stir until well coated (approximately 1 minute).
5. Then add wine and stir until absorbed.
6. Add 1/2 cup of heated chicken broth.
7. Continually stir while cooking until broth is absorbed.
8. Rice should be cooking at a slow boil.
9. Continue this process until half the chicken broth is absorbed.
10. Add walnuts, sage, and nutmeg.
11. Continue the cycle of adding broth while stirring and cooking.
12. Risotto should be creamy and moist, tender yet firm to the bite (al dente).
13. Once all chicken broth is absorbed, remove from heat, stir in cheese, adjust with salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately with sage leaves as a garnish.