Mushrooms and ramps are in season, and the combination of the two is a marriage made in heaven. This Mushroom Risotto with Ramps recipe makes the best use of both. What are ramps? They are wild leeks that are generally not cultivated, but rather foraged. They have a very short season in early spring of less than three weeks, which makes them expensive. If you can’t find them at your local farmer’s market, substitute asparagus or another green vegetable, though you can’t expect the delicate oniony-garlicky taste that ramps impart.
To Prepare the Ramps
Wash the ramps thoroughly, and dry on paper towels. There may be a great deal of hidden dirt in the leaves.
Ramps.
Roughly chop the ramps.
Chop the ramps.
Gently sauté them in a frying pan, just until tender. Season with salt and pepper. Scrape into a bowl, and set aside.
Sauté the ramps.
To Prepare the Mushrooms
Soak the dried porcini mushrooms in 2 cups of hot water for at least 15 minutes.
Soak the dried porcini.
Drain the liquid from the porcini, using a sieve. Reserve the liquid. Pat dry the pieces of porcini, then roughly chop them. Set aside.
Chop the porcini.
Wash and dry the fresh mushrooms. I use a combination of Cremini and Shitakes. If you can find morels or chanterelles, those are even better. Slice into bite-sized pieces.
Mince the shallots and the garlic. Using the same pan in which you cooked the ramps, sauté the fresh mushrooms in the hot butter and olive oil until lightly browned. Don’t cook too many at once, or they’ll just steam. Near the end of the cooking add the shallots and garlic to the pan and cook a minute or two longer.
Sauté the mushrooms.
Scrape the mushrooms into a bowl and reserve.
Sauté the chopped porcini mushrooms for a couple of minutes in the same sauté pan. Scrape them into the fresh mushrooms. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and fresh thyme. Set aside.
To Prepare the Risotto
Place the chicken stock in a large pot. Bring to the simmer, then add the reserved porcini liquid, pouring it through a strainer lined with damp paper towels, to be certain to remove any dirt or residue. Continue to simmer.
Strain the porcini liquid through paper towels.
In a large, heavy kettle, cook the onion and shallots together in 2 tablespoons of butter and 2 tablespoons of oil until softened and turning golden.
Sauté the onions and shallots.
Add the rice to the onions and shallots, stirring to thoroughly coat the rice. Continue to cook for 2 to 3 minutes until the edges of the grains become translucent and the rice is toasted.
Pour in the wine and stir well until it is evaporated. Begin adding the simmering stock 1⁄2 cup at a time, stirring constantly until each addition has nearly evaporated. Continue this until most of the stock has been incorporated.
Many recipes say this should take 16 to 20 minutes. I find it takes me closer to 35-40 minutes to get the rice to the degree of tenderness I like. When it reaches that done point, stir in the last of the stock, but don’t let it evaporate so the rice remains creamy. Taste for seasoning.
Remove the kettle from the heat, and stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons of the butter and the Parmigiano. Again taste for seasoning, and fold in the mushrooms.
Fold the mushrooms into the risotto.
Finally, fold in the ramps.
Fold in the ramps.
Serve the Mushroom Risotto with Ramps in bowls, providing extra Parmigiano on the side.
