Lemon Parmesan Risotto

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (about 2 medium lemons)

• 1/3 cup heavy cream

• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, plus more for serving

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided

• Kosher salt, to taste

• 4 to 5 cups unsalted chicken stock

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for serving

• 1/2 cup finely chopped yellow onion

• 1/4 cup finely chopped shallot

• 1 1/2 cups arborio rice

• 1/4 cup dry white wine

• 3 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, freshly grated (about 3/4 cup), plus more for serving

Directions

1. Heat lemon juice in a small saucepan over medium, stirring occasionally, until reduced by half, about 8 minutes. Remove from heat; add cream, pepper, and 2 tablespoons butter, stirring until combined. Season with salt to taste. Set aside. (This creamy, lemony mixture should be faintly concentrated.)

2. While lemon juice is reducing, bring stock to a simmer in a large saucepan over medium-high. (You want it hot when it hits the rice.) Turn off heat, and set aside.

3. Heat oil and remaining 1 tablespoon butter in a second large saucepan over medium. Add onion and shallot; cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent (no browning), about 6 minutes. Add rice; cook, stirring constantly, until every grain is coated in fat, 1 to 2 minutes. Add wine, stirring constantly until the liquid is au sec (basically totally evaporated), about 30 seconds.

4. Add 4 cups hot stock, about 1/4 cup at a time, to rice mixture, stirring constantly over medium. Let each addition cook down until almost absorbed before adding the next. (This constant stirring is the key; it releases starch and gives you that creamy magic.) Continue for 30 to 35 minutes total, adding up to remaining 1 cup hot stock, as needed, until rice is creamy and tender but not mushy.

5. Reduce heat to low; fold in lemony cream sauce, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon and moving the pan back and forth, almost in circles, until fully combined.

6. Take saucepan off heat, and fold Parmigiano-Reggiano into risotto until combined and melted. Season with additional salt to taste.

7. Spoon risotto onto a plate; tap bottom of plate so risotto spreads out slightly. (It should relax and spread, not sit in a stiff mound.) Serve immediately with additional pepper, oil, and Parmigiano-Reggiano.