mushroom risotto

Do you know, I’m not sure I agree with Friday night Six Nations kick offs. They ruin the pace of the weekend, the anticipation of getting up on Saturday morning and wallowing in the paper’s speculation, getting the beers and snacks in for the game and/or, if you’re lucky, planning the wander to the pub to bellow at Alain Rolland in public.

Friday night kick offs mean you miss the build-up because you’re at work, all the excitement is replaced by panic as you try and get home in time to go to the offie, and you’ve got to juggle the needs of cooking dinner with national anthems and trying to pour as much beer down your throat as possible, which makes any sort of knife work a lottery. I wouldn’t mind if everybody had a go, but it’s seems only Cardiff council are happy to sign-off on these games, so it’s always Welsh games that engender this low-level panic and paranoia. Well, slightly more low-level panic and paranoia than usual anyway.

With one eye on the clock and the other on our budget, and if possible a third on the fact Al ‘is that coat my jacket’ is coming to watch and eat, tonight we go for a fairly quick mushroom risotto on the basis we’ve got all the ingredients in the fridge. Although as it turns out we don’t, and Ana has to pick up rice and pancetta on her way home, and I pick up more mushrooms and brewskis on my way back. Plus a stomach-settling scotch egg care of our guest who I also find lurking in Waitrose.

Due to the fact I spent more time watching the first 10 minutes of the game, and less time stirring, it’s not quite as creamy as usual but the addition of shitake mushrooms to the usual mix of dried porcini and chestnut certainly turns the flavour up. Perfect half-time stodge…

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It's my own recipe you know...