1 cup Aborio rice
1 tbsp. butter
1 tbsp. olive oil
4 cups chicken broth, simmering
1/4 cup minced onion
4 oz. Fontina cheese, sliced thinly
1 bunch asparagus, snapped
kosher salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste

Melt butter and mix with olive oil over medium heat, one to two minutes, or until foaming but not brown.

Sauté onions until soft and translucent, but not caramelized (brown), two to four minutes.

Add rice. Stir until translucent and thoroughly coated, about two minutes.

In separate pan, blanch snapped asparagus about five minutes, or until tender. Immediately put in cold water bath for two minutes, drain, salt liberally and set aside.

Add one cup chicken stock and stir frequently until absorbed. Repeat this step until all broth is used, one cup at a time, and the rice is tender to the bite, but not mushy.

Add asparagus and cheese. Mix thoroughly and serve immediately. Best with Spiced Red Wine Chicken with Prosciutto (also on this website).

Submitted by: Rebecca Bryant