Steel Cooking Together After All These Years

Friday Mike (aka “dad”) and I celebrated our wedding anniversary. It’s been 11 years and two beautiful babies since that day. According to the anniversary lists, steel is the traditional gift this year, but we opted for a sensational dinner for two instead. Do stainless steel utensils count? 😉

When we were planning our meal, we tossed around several of our old favorites – things that Mike used to whip up to impress me. You see, I didn’t cook back then – except for my favorite bowl of pasta which only I seem to like. (To this day I think my dad is afraid to touch any pasta that I’ve made.) Fortunately, I’ve evolved since then and Mike and I have spent lots of date nights in our own kitchen whipping up meals, sipping wine and having great conversations. It’s easily one of our favorite things to do. So this weekend we got the kids to bed early and whipped up one of our favorite celebratory meals – Champagne Risotto with Truffle Oil.

We started with the Arborio rice, chicken stock, vegetable oil and butter.

We brought the chicken stock to a boil in a medium-sized sauce pan. Once boiling, we reduced it to a simmer and added the shrimp. We leave the shrimp in the stock while cooking the risotto. (Aw – isn’t this cute. 😉 )

In our larger sauce pan we prepare the risotto, starting with butter and oil over medium-high heat. After about a minute, we tossed in the shallots and leeks.

We typically only use shallots, but I’ve wanted to try leeks and thought they would make a nice addition to this dish. After 2-3 minutes, it’s time to add the Arborio and toss to coat. The first liquid added to the dish is half of the Champagne. We used an Asti, but any Champagne or dry sparkling white wine will do the trick.

Once the Champagne was absorbed we began the process of adding the chicken stock and cooking the rice. The key to a good risotto – constant attention and continual stirring. The whole process took between 20 and 30 minutes. Once all the stock was incorporated the rest of the Champagne was added and the risotto cooked for another 2-3 minutes. Finally we removed it from the heat and stirred in some SarVecchio. We spooned out the risotto and garnished it with the shrimp and truffle oil. While the truffle oil isn’t necessary it adds a tasty luxuriousness to the whole meal, and you don’t need to use more than a 1/2 tablespoon per dish for the effect.

This was easily a 4 spoon dish for both Mike and I, but then again, we knew that going in. The risotto is creamy with bites of both sweet and earthy goodness, and it goes very well with a fresh roasted garlic, a hearty bread and dipping sauce.

This is definitely one of our favorite celebratory meals. It’s not terribly difficult and it uses so many fun and interesting ingredients. Perhaps the best part of this meal, however, is that it lends itself well to a kitchen date night. Think sipping wine while snacking on the SarVecchio – yum! Who knew 11 years could bring so much goodness. 🙂

Print this recipe: Champagne Risotto with Truffle Oil

40 thoughts on “Steel Cooking Together After All These Years”

    • ChefMom says:
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      Thanks! My grandma was allergic to seafood – shellfish anyway. She developed it later in life, so I’m always cautious about it. I hope it doesn’t happen to me as well. I just love shellfish!

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  3. Lisa {Smart Food and Fit} says:
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    congratulations on your 11th year! It goes by so fast doesn’t it! I think it’s wonderful you two like to spend quality time together in the kitchen. I too evolved in cooking over the years. Still to this day my dad questions why I have to make every dish a heathy dish! I love Arborio rice with a touch of white wine but I’ll try it with Champagne next time. Now I have to think of what to cook for my wedding anniversary next month!

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  4. Geni - Sweet and Crumby says:
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    So glad to be catching up on your blog since i am back in action. This post looks crazy delicious and we have our anniversary around the corner so I may just have to pull out all the stops and give this a go. So glad you shared it! Happy belated anniversary!

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  5. Charles says:
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    Firstly – Big Congratulations! My 1 year wedding anniversary will be coming up in a month so I’m currently looking for some things to cook up! I had an amazing shrimp risotto at a brunch in Paris recently and it’s made me want to try one ever since – I even have some arborio rice right now! 🙂

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  6. Erin Renee says:
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    Champagne risotto? Are you KIDDING me?!?! This looks BRILLIANT! I’m SO excited to try this. I’ve been wanting to try to make a nice risotto for a long time. You have got to be my new favorite person! 🙂

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    • ChefMom says:
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      Thanks Erin! It is so delicious! It makes for great leftovers too. I could easily eat this on a weekly basis. I have to find more reasons to have celebratory dinners. LOL. 😉

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  7. Kathryn says:
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    Yeah!! Happy anniversary! 😀 Based on all your culinary adventures, I can’t imagine a time when you couldn’t cook. How did you get into cooking? Was it the marriage? The kids, that encouraged you? Whatever the story, congratulations!! I especially enjoyed the heart shrimp picture on this post. 🙂

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    • ChefMom says:
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      Thanks Kathryn! Well I thought I could cook – just no one else thought my creations were edible. LOL. I’m not really sure how I got into cooking. Marriage definitely taught me to enjoy a wider variety of foods than I was used to. The kids have taught me to eat healthier. But I think my joy of cooking began after I started frequenting apple orchards in the fall. The international cooking adventure – really just a way to explore different cuisines and open the kids up to the world around them. 🙂

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  9. Caroline says:
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    Happy anniversary!!! You make a lovely couple. 🙂 Sounds like you had a fabulous celebratory dinner. I’m also really loving the picture of the shrimps–too cute.

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  10. thefooddoctor says:
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    Congratulations on your anniversary..wishing you many more happy years enjoyed in the company of each other…
    Love your recipe and the pictures are stunning..I really loved the shrimps forming a heart 🙂

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    • ChefMom says:
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      Thanks so much! The photo compliment means a lot coming from you – I am always so impressed by your photography! I liked the heart pic too. Hubby thought I was nuts. LOL. 😉

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    • ChefMom says:
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      Thanks so much! It was such a fun way to celebrate. I need to find more reasons to celebrate and have this dish again. 🙂 Thanks for visiting and commenting.

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    • ChefMom says:
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      Thanks Greg! I couldn’t agree more. We love our nights out, but there’s just something about being in the kitchen together. We have some of our best dates at home cooking.

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  15. spicegirlfla says:
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    Happy Anniversary! And what a touching photo of you two! Also need to comment on the heart shrimp… too cute!! I think you both spent a wonderful anniversary evening together, cooking, laughing and sipping wine!

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  17. sallybr says:
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    Congratulations! Phil and I are just slightly ahead of you, we’ll celebrate 12 years next March!

    Your meal was perfect for the occasion, not too heavy, very elegant and sexy

    Happy anniversary!

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    • ChefMom says:
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      Thanks Sally! Oh you guys are close to us – 2000 weddings! Makes it easy to track how many years it’s been – not that I wouldn’t know anyway. LOL. It’s definitely a fun and elegant meal. Sexy too – you’re right. 🙂

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  18. Kelly says:
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    Awww, what a beautiful post! Love the photo of the two of you…and the heart shaped shrimp…. Congratulations on 11 years together! You’ve certainly come a long way with your cooking skills and your Champagne Risotto with Truffle Oil looks so delicious… How did you like the leek? I think it’s a great addition. p.s. stainless steel works for us 🙂

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    • ChefMom says:
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      Thanks Kelly! My cooking skills really are night and day. It still shocks my mom that I’ve taken to cooking the way I have in the last several years. LOL. Oh and I loved the leek! I used it in another recipe last night. What a fun and versatile little veggie!

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    • ChefMom says:
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      Thanks Mandy! I can’t believe how fast the 11 years has gone. In some ways it seems like yesterday. Then I think about all that’s happened in the last 11 years and it seems like longer. Just amazing. It hasn’t been without its ups and downs, but I love him more every day. 🙂

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  20. Kay aka Babygirl says:
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    Let me just say.. HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!!! I hope you two wonderful people had a wonderful time ;). And let me just say this meal looks absolutely romantic and delicious. And I love how easy this meal is to make. I can’t wait to make this for a romantic dinner of my own one of these days. I hope you guys had a wonderful weekend

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    • ChefMom says:
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      Thanks Kay! We had a great weekend. So much fun reminiscing and looking forward. 🙂 This meal is totally romantic and delicious. Definitely one to make if you’re looking to impress someone one of these days. 🙂

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