Soul Satisfying Risotto

      I have some beautiful leftover roast chicken in the fridge as well as a few of those beautiful leeks I have been using all week. I was interested in finding a way to use them both in our dinner tonight. I also wanted to incorporate some of the tasty chicken stock I made the other day. Some of the stock has gone into a soup for tomorrow’s dinner and some had been put in the freezer. Tonight I will use part of it to create a soul satisfying risotto. This meal is simple but does require about a half hour of your time. It must be stirred regularly and eaten promptly but the creamy goodness is so worth it.

                           ~             

           1      Tbs. Olive oil

           1      Tbs butter

           2      Tbs. Tarragon

           a few threads of saffron 

           (optional ~ I’m using a bit)

           3      Cups chicken stock

           ¾     of a sautéed leek

          1/4    Slice bacon

           ¾     Cup Arborio rice

          1/4    Cup dry white wine

          1/2    Cup grated Parmesan cheese

          6oz    Cooked leftover roast chicken

            Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

This is the rice I used for tonight's risotto.

                            

I put 3 cups of chicken stock in a separate saucepan heat and to simmer

In the risotto pot:

  place butter & olive oil & 

the cleaned leek sliced thinly 

sauté till soft but not browned

                            ~

(When I added the leek I also added ¼ of a slice of bacon)

The bacon was diced incredibly small (like bits size) 

when done:

Add the rice to coat it with the oil & butter

Add the tarragon 

Add the wine & cook about a minute

Add a ladle full of the simmering stock

(If you are using a few saffron threads you can put them in now)

                         ~

Stir till its mostly absorbed 5 min or so,

(Till you can drag the wooden spoon across the pot bottom and not have it quickly run back)

Add salt & Pepper keep adding the stock till its absorbed in the same way as the first ladle full (add slowly will take about ½ hour)

When done I toss in the cooked chicken and the grated cheese & serve

Risotto can get gummy if it sits too long after cooking so serve it just as you are ready too eat it.

TIP OF THE DAY: Use bacon as a flavoring. I just love bacon and although I don’t have it very often I do enjoy the occasional BLT. Bacon can add deliciousness to a wide variety of recipes. Today I used a scant amount in my risotto. I didn’t use it as an ingredient but as a flavoring. I always keep a few slices of bacon in my freezer and that way I always have some on hand for a night like tonight when I didn’t want the bacon flavor to overtake the dish just to give it a tiny additional layer of flavor. Think about recipes that you love that could benefit from a sprinkling of bacon.