A few months ago, I went to a social media week event here in London about food. It was a great event, I met some interesting people, had thought-provoking conversations and ate free burritos.

The best presenters, in my mind, were the funny, interesting and passionate people behind Great British Chefs, an all-encompassing food site, to say the least.

I started following them via my newly-created blog twitter and a while later, along came this mushroom risotto recipe.

It is good. Very good. It’s thick with mushroom flavor, hearty and autumnal. I’m definitely into the autumn foods right now.

If you like mushrooms, this is the risotto for you. You can tone down some of the intense mushroom flavor by using milder mushrooms, or just picking one variety. You could also mix up the proportions of mushrooms. I, however, am on a fresh shiitake kick, so they were very welcome to the party. And on sale.

And try not to be intimidated by the stirring required for risotto. Put a good TV show on your laptop or tablet and get stirring. (I watched Castle this time.)

Adapted from Great British Chefs

Serves: 4

On The Counter:

5 tbsp (75g) butter
10 oz (300g) of assorted fresh mushrooms, cut in similar-sized pieces (shiitake, oyster, chestnut, for example)
1 small shallot, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
10 oz (300g) of Arborio risotto rice
1/2 cup (120ml) of white wine
3 cups (700ml) of vegetable stock, plus more if needed
2 tbsp (40g) of grated Parmesan
olive oil
salt
black pepper

What to Do:

Melt half the butter in a sauce pan over medium heat. Add mushrooms, season lightly with salt. Sautee until light brown and soft. Add shallots and garlic and cook until soft, but not brown. (About 30 seconds to 1 minute.)

Stir in the rice and turn up the heat to medium-high. Keep stirring and cook until transparent, about a minute. Pour in the wine and continue stirring.

Add the stock, one ladle-full at a time. Stir constantly, nearly all the wine is absorbed and the rice is creamy and cooked through. This takes about 15 minutes. If the rice is undercooked, add water and continue.

Season with a little more salt and fresh pepper. Add the remaining butter and the Parmesan cheese, and stir until well combined. Serve.