Thursday Night Recipe

Dirty Risotto
Recipe from "Giada's Family Dinners" by Giada de Laurentiis, slightly modified

Ingredients
5 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
2 Tbls. unsalted butter
Leftover bacon from Monday night, crumbled
Leftover browned 1/2 pound hot Italian sausage from Tuesday night
1 medium finely chopped onion
1 large chopped red bell pepper
4 oz. button mushrooms, stems removed and coarsely chopped
1 1/2 cups arborio rice (it's a little expensive, but you have to get this kind)
3/4 cup dry white wine (could substitue chicken stock, but the wine is best)
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese (could use pre-grated)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 Tbls. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1) Bring the broth to a simmer in a medium saucepan. Cover and keep hot over low heat.
2) In a large, heavy saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onion, bell pepper, and mushrooms and saute until tender, about 8 minutes, scraping up any browned bits and the bottom of the pan. Add the leftover bacon and sausage in and heat through.
3) Add the rice and stir to coat with the oil. Add the wine and simmer until it is almost completely evaporated, about 1 minute.
4) Add 1/2 cup of the simmering broth and stir until it is almost completely absorbed, about 2 minutes. Continue cooking the rice, adding the broth 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly and allowing each addition of broth to absorb before adding the next, until the rice is tender but still firm to the bite and the mixture is creamy, about 25 minutes total. Remove from the heat.
5) Stir in the Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Transfer to a serving bowl. Sprinkle with the parsley and serve immediately.