EAT: MUSHROOM, SPINACH + THYME RISOTTO

SERVES 8 | PREP 15 MINS | COOKING 30 MINS | VEGETARIAN, GLUTEN FREE

I love risotto, and it has been weeks since I last made it. But with an excess of spinach in our garden and my love for cooking returning with the lazy days of post Christmas, it's back on the menu. Because we have children, I have cut back on the amount of parmesan I put on this, and no longer put it in my cooking, but sprinkle it on top. Easier on the hips, and virtually fat free! Gotta love that melt-in-your-mouth rice. Serve with your favourite garden salad and a toasted garlic foccaccia.
INGREDIENTS
2 cups aborio rice
4-5 cups chicken stock, simmer in a separate saucepan
1 onion, chopped finely
1 garlic clove
3 tsp olive oil
2 tsp thyme
1 tbsp italian parsley, chopped
500g mushrooms, chopped in quarters
250g baby spinach (or around 6 pieces of large garden spinach, chopped finely)
parmesan cheese, what you desire
sea salt
cracked black pepper

METHOD
1 Fry onion, oil, garlic and thyme in oil until soft.
2 Meanwhile, spray the pan and mushrooms with olive oil spray and place chopped mushrooms in a fry pan and turn heat on high, cook mushrooms until they burn slightly.
3 Add the rice to the onion and thyme mixture and cook for 1 minute until all grains are coated with oil.
4 Add the hot stock at a time until rice is almost al dente.
5 Once nearly all absorbed, add the spinach, mushrooms, parmesan and pepper. Once the spinach has wilted, serve and garnish with more parmesan.