mushroom - green bean risotto

i tackled my first risotto several years ago when my husband and i lived with his parents the summer that we were married. my in-laws love, love, love food and i would browse her cookbooks for hours. now that we live in the middle of nowhere and what most cooks would consider basic ingredients aren't available, i had to use orzo instead of arborio rice. it turned out wonderfully, and my husband said that this risotto specifically was one of the best things he's ever had. the extra effort that risotto takes is always worth it.

this is about half way through adding the stock

• 4 cups stock (i used my beef stock from scratch i had in the freezer, but any kind will do)
• 1 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, or to taste*
• 1/2 pound of orzo (about a quarter of a regular sized package or 2 cups arborio rice.)
• s & p to taste
• 1 tbsp of dried parsley
• 2 tbsp butter
  
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese.

heat stock. in separate pan heat olive oil and butter, add onions and fry until onions are translucent. add minced garlic and rice/orzo and fry until orzo is toasted or rice is slightly translucent. add stock one ladle full at a time and keep stirring. turn heat down a bit and keep added stock and keep stirring. i find that towards the end, you can add the last two cups all at once. stir until absorbed. add s & p, remove from heat and add butter and parm. cover and let stand for a few minutes.

*we love garlic in our house, and when i'm cooking i put a clove in for each serving, plus one or two more for the pot