Asparagus Risotto

I am having an affair.  Don't worry M knows all about it.  I am having a love affair with asparagus, yes ASPARAGUS!!!!!  I hadn't really had it very often till a few months ago.  My mom took a bunch, placed them on a cookie sheet, drizzled them with olive oil, garlic salt and pepper and baked them till just tender, yet still had crunch to them.  Let me tell you that is when I fell in LOVE!!!!!!!!!!  Every time I was at the store I would pick some up, and would do the same thing with little variation.  But by the 10th time doing them this way M was a little tired of it so he asked if I could try them some other way.  GASP I know some other way, how dare you.  But since I love my hubby I decided to try something different.  Looked in the pantry and realized I had picked up some arborio rice to make risotto.  So I thought why not....asparagus risotto!!!!

3 tbsp butter divided
1 bunch of asparagus
1 cup arborio rice
1/2 cup white wine (you can use chicken stock if you don't have wine, but lets face it I always have wine handy)
4 cups of warmed chicken stock
Parmesan cheese

Take 1 tbsp of the butter an saute the asparagus over med high heat for about 3 mins, you still want them to be firm since you will add them at the end of the cooking process.  Remove from skillet and add the remaining butter.  Add the rice and cook over med heat till it just starts to turn a very light brown.  Now take the wine and deglaze the pan.  Stir till the wine has cooked off.  Add one cup of the chicken stock, stir till the liquid is absorbed.  Then add the second cup and stir till absorbed, then add cup 3 stir till absorbed.  (do you see a pattern here?)  When you add the final cup of stock put the asparagus back in, and cook till the liquid is absorbed and you have a smooth creamy risotto.  Top with cheese and enjoy!!!!

This is a time consuming dish so I serve with baked chicken with mushroom cream sauce.  You can not walk away from this while it is cooking, it needs to be stirred constantly.  While it is time consuming it is well worth the work!!!  And if asparagus isn't your love interest of the moment try it with mushrooms, yummy!!!!!!