Mushroom and Spinach Risotto with Truffle Oil

If you have been following this blog for a while, you may have figured out that I have a bit of an obsession with truffle oil. If I’m at a restaurant and something is made with truffle oil, that pretty much guarantees that I will order it. At home I’m always trying new ways to use truffle oil like truffle fries, popcorn sprinkled with truffle salt and so on. So I thought that truffle oil drizzled over mushroom risotto would be heavenly. I mean what’s not to love, mushrooms, rice and truffle oil!

If you haven’t made risotto before, don’t be afraid of it. It’s really not hard to make, it just takes a little bit of patience and a LOT of stirring. All of that stirring brings the starch out of the rice and creates a really creamy sauce that is absolutely divine. This would be a great meal for a Meatless Monday and if you want to make it totally vegetarian, you could use vegetable stock instead of beef stock. If for some reason you don’t want to add the truffle oil, the risotto would still be delicious, but I highly recommend drizzling some on at the end because it puts the dish totally over the top!

Mushroom and Spinach Risotto with Truffle Oil

1 small onion, chopped
8 oz sliced cremini mushrooms (also called baby bellas)
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp dried thyme
2 tbsp olive oil
1 cup arborio rice
1 cup dry white wine (I used chardonnay)
4 cups beef broth
2 big handfuls of baby spinach
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
salt and pepper
truffle oil for drizzling (optional)

Bring beef broth to a simmer in a medium sauce pan. Chop onion into a small dice and give the mushroom slices a rough chop. Mince garlic. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and saute for about five minutes, until translucent. Add mushrooms and thyme, saute until browned. Add garlic and saute for another minute, until garlic is fragrant, season with a little salt and pepper.

Stir in rice and cook for a couple of minutes. Add wine and stirring constantly, cook until wine is almost fully absorbed.

Continue stirring and add one ladle of beef stock. Add another ladle when stock is almost absorbed, making sure you continue stirring. Continue adding stock, one ladle at a time until all of the stock has been added, it should take about 25 minutes total.

Once all of the beef stock is incorporated, stir in the spinach. Cook for a minute or two until the spinach has wilted. Stir in cheese.