Man in the Kitchen

I've been kinda nagging at R. lately to do more cooking for us, and something other than plain old spaghetti with canned tomato sauce(which seems to be his speciality). Right now at the hotel we're in the middle of host a large kosher group for passover and because I am pulling in very long hours, I informed R. he needed to cook dinner at least 2 nights this week! So even though I was lucky enough to get a Saturday off, I still insisted I wasn't going to cook tonight. I think at 5 o'clock he finally realized I was dead serious.

So he pulled out one of our Cooking Light magazines and choose to make a risotto dish that we've had before, which is fine by me cause it's delicious. We've modified the recipe a bit to suit our tastes, of course, and we could probably eat the entire recipe between the two of us even though is serves six! We did make the full recipe tonight, so I could take some to work tomorrow for lunch because due to kosher we've only been getting sandwiches in the lunch room, and I don't think I can handle another ham and cheese......

Mushroom Risotto with Goat Cheese

inspired by Cooking Lights' Risotto-Style Fregula with Mushrooms, Abbamele, and Goat Cheese

2 1/4 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 cup water
1 tablespoon olive oil
8 ounces wild mushrooms
1/3 cup chopped shallots
1 1/4 cups uncooked arborio rice
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh chives
1/4 cup goat cheese

Combine broth and 1 cup water in a saucepan over medium heat; bring to a simmer. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add mushrooms; cook 5 minutes or until moisture evaporates. Add shallots; cook 4 minutes, stirring frequently. Add arborio rice and salt; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in wine; cook 30 seconds or until liquid is nearly absorbed, stirring constantly. Add remaining broth mixture, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly until each portion of broth is absorbed before adding the next (about 15 minutes total). Remove from heat.
Stir in chives and goat cheese. Serve immediately.