Leek & Porcini Risotto

I learned something new on this one.  Maybe many of you know this trick but I found a bag of dried porcini mushrooms in my pantry.  The key to the flavor and color of this dish was to use the reconstituted water in the risotto.  I will adapt this concept many more times in my risotto.

Recipe
Leek & Porcini Mushroom (adapted from aspicyperspective.com):

1. Melt 3 tbsp butter in a skillet and when melted, add 1/2 of a leek (the white part just down to the green part) and cook until softened – 5 minutes
2. While this is cooking, heat 6 cups of chicken stock and hydrate your porcini mushrooms – will take 20 – 30 minutes to hydrate
3. Add 2 1/2 cups of arborio rice and cook for 1 minute
4. Add 1/2 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp smoked paprika and 1/2 tsp of ancho chili powder, pinch of spanish saffron and mix well
5. Add 1 cup of white wine to the rice mixture and cook until it evaporates
6. Add the water (that you separated from the dried porcinis) into the rice and cook until it reduces
7. Start adding the warm stock to the rice 1 cup at a time – make sure your stove is on medium heat, it needs to be pretty warm to create the creaminess that makes risotto so good
8. Just before you put in your last cup of stock, add the mushrooms
9. Finish with the last cup of stock and add 3/4 cup of shredded parmesan saving a touch to top the risotto for plating