Pear and cheese risotto was on the menu at the 2nd International Office online cooking event on February 06, 2021. International students and students from the Italian language course of the Language Center cooked this risotto, typical for Lombardy, under the guidance of the Italian chef Riccardo. He cooked live at the Hotel Il Perlo in Bellagio on Lake Como, which offers a breathtaking panorama of Lake. While Chef Riccardo gave the instructions for the risotto, the owner of Il Perlo, Carlo Sancassano, entertained the participants with exciting information about the region. Those who wish can recreate the pear and cheese risotto at home; you can find more promising recipes on Riccardo's food blog. By the way: A further cooperation with Il Perlo is planned. The International Office will inform you in time and invite all interested students to the next event!
Pear and Cheese Risotto (4 servings)
- 360 gr. risotto rice
- 2.5 liters of vegetable broth (preferably homemade)
- 1 small white onion
- 1 pear
- 200 gr. soft, salty cheese. (The chef uses Taleggio cheese, but any other salty, well-aged cheese will work.)
- 1 glass of milk
- 2 glasses of dry white wine
- some butter and olive oil
- salt & pepper
- a small glass of Brandy (optional)
Instructions
- Prepare the broth. Fill a pot with cold water. Peel the carrot and onion, wash them and place them into the pot along with the celery stick and one bay leaf. Cover the pot and bring the broth to a boil. Keep simmering for at least 10 minutes, remove the vegetables.
- Cut the small onion into brunoise (= little cubes).
- Dice the cheese.
- Peel the pear and cut it into little cubes. Wet it with lemon juice.
- Heat the butter in a skillet. When it is hot, add the diced pear and sauté while adding brown sugar. Deglaze with brandy and reserve.
- Heat the milk in a small saucepan, bring it to the boil and then reduce heat to low to prevent overflow; remove from heat and add the cheese cut into small pieces. Stir to melt the cheese. Reserve.
- Grease the pot in which you are going to cook the rice with some olive oil.
- Heat the oil. Add the diced onion and sauté for a couple of minutes. Add the rice grains and toast for a couple of minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Deglaze with white wine.
- Continue to cook the rice by adding broth a little at a time. Follow the cooking time indicated on the rice package.
- When the rice is cooked, turn off the heat, add the Taleggio fondue, a pinch of black pepper and salt to taste.
- The result should be creamy, not dry.
- Spread the rice on a plate.
- Decorate with glazed pear cubes.
