Romantic Night In Complete with Homemade Risotto

It's always great to stay in to cuddle on the comfy couch and watch a great action flick (or just a mediocre one considering recent productions). However, no good night in is complete without a romantic dinner. Here's my list for the perfect night in.

1. A boy or a pillow substitute - *loving boyfriend* CHECK!
2. Music to set the mood - *turns on the radio* CHECK!
3. Delicious dinner - *lamb steak with asparagus and mushroom risotto* CHECK!
4. Alcoholic beverage to accompany dinner - *Argentinian wine* CHECK!
5. Dessert - *Vineyard vidal icewine* CHECK!
6. After dinner activity - *rents movie on iTune* CHECK!
   

I also suggested that we dress up for the evening in, but that was shot down before I completed my sentence... Oh well! Everything is equally enjoyable in jeans. He did add to the evening by lighting some tea candles and floating them in a nice bowl. It was quite the romantic touch.

Order in which to prepare the meal

1. Marinate the lamb.
2. Prepare the asparagus.
3. Starting to make the risotto.
4. Preheat the oven.
5. Place the asparagus in the oven when you have 30 minutes longer to go on the risotto.
6. Make the lamb when the risotto is ready.
7. Everything should be warm and ready when the lamb is done!

Lamb Steak
Require at least 30 minutes to marinate. Recipe can be used for blade chop, rib chop, loin chop, leg center slice steak and any other similar cut.

Marinating steak is simple you can use whatever herbs you have on hand. With lamb, I prefer using either rosemary or thyme. As always my favorite secrete ingredient is SOY SAUCE! It gives wonderful depth to the dishes that salt alone cannot achieve. The soy sauce has a slightly sugary component and it will caramelize when you grill the steak, leaving a wonderful crust. With all red meat, I love adding some paprika to give the meat a slightly smoky flavor.

1. Take a large ziploc bag. Add soy sauce, olive oil, salt, rosemary (or chopped thyme). Shake to to mix well.
2. Put in the meat and shake the bag to coat each pieces with the mixture. Adjust the meat pieces so they do not over lap each other.
3. Reopen the bag to let the air out. Let the meat marinate on one side for 30 minutes then flip to marinate for another 30 minutes.
4. Remove from ziploc and rub each side with some paprika. Sear the meat for 3-5 minutes on each side in a hot pan (mid-high). The steak is ready to flip when it easily detaches itself from the bottom of the pan with a gentle nudge.

Asparagus

1. Wash the asparagus. Remove the chewy bits on the bottom.
2. Place the asparagus in a glass bakeware and add a generous splash of olive oil.
3. Shake to coat each asparagus in oil. Cover with aluminum foil.
4. Preheat the oven to 375F. Bake for 20-30 minutes until the asparagus is cooked through.

Mushroom Risotto
Recipe adapted from Recipes from the Cauldron
Makes generous servings for 6 as a side dish.
Prep time: 15 minutes. Cooking time: 35-50 minutes.

400g arborio rice
1 yellow onion (or 2 shallots) finely minced
454g white mushrooms
454g mixed mushroom
170g protobella mushroom
1/2 cup warm water
1/2 cup white wine
1L chicken stock
1/3-1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
few sprigs of fresh thyme
1 tablespoon of olive oil
3 tablespoons of unsalted butter, divided (2 tablespoons and 1 tablespoon portions)
salt, pepper to taste

Quick noes: The all the liquids other than the wine need to be warm. Cold liquid will shock the rice and causing the grain to flake into pieces. Mushrooms tends to give off quite a bit of water when cooked. I chose to use the two pan method but the one pan method will work fine. Prepare everything before hand. There will be no time to find or chop anything midway. It is bad for risotto making to stop. Read the instructions over and over before you start so you know what to do next. Lastly, patience is a virtue. Stirring can get old real fast but do not turn up the heat. The risotto cannot be rushed.

1. Wash the mushrooms and slice them finely. Finely chopped the onion or shallot. Grate the cheese if it didn't come grated already. Measure out everything you need and place them near the stove where they are easily reachable. Start to heat the thyme in the stock in a saucepan to a bare simmer. Keep the stock warm on the lowest heat setting. Keep some extra warm water on the side and a ladle for the stock.
2. In a pan with high sides, heat the oil in medium high heat. Stir in the onion/shallots until they have soften and became translucent. (You do not want to brown them). Add the 2 tablespoons of the butter and add in the sliced mushrooms. Sautée quickly to prevent the mushrooms from sticking to the pan. Add a splash of water if necessary. Add some salt to flavor the mushrooms. When the mushrooms are cooked, set aside. The juices released from the onion and mushrooms do not have to be boiled down.
3. In a separate pan, add the last tablespoon of butter. Melt the butter on medium high heat. Once melted, stir in the rice. Stir frequently to make sure none of the grain sticks or burns. Turn down the heat if necessary. The rice is ready when the grains turns a little golden in colour. Quickly pour in the wine to deglaze the pan. Turn the heat down to medium. Scrape everything from the bottom and add in half a ladle of warm stock, stir. After most of the liquid has been absorbed, add another ladle of stock.
4. When half of the stock has been added. Stir in the mushrooms and any juices into the rice pan. Also add in the thyme sprigs that was infusing the stock. Continue to stir and add the stock until you have ran out of stock. The rice is ready when only a small white spot is left in the center of the grain. If not, add in more warm water and stir until the rice is ready. Remove the pan from heat, cover the pan, and let stand for 5-15 minutes. Remove the thyme sprigs and stir in the parmesan cheese. Serve with a wedge of lemon and some freshly ground black peppers.

Tip for richer risotto: add a 1/4 cup of heavy cream in before you add in the last 1/4 cup of stock. Continue on to follow the recipe as described.