Mushroom Spinach Risotto

Who says steak is only for special occassions or weekends? In our house, steak is great for anyday of the week! This past week has been an uneventful one in my kitchen. With my husband’s new school schedule, he’s in class during the evenings. As a result, I’ve been unmotivated to cook up anything really blogworthy. However tonight, I’m really proud of how my husband has been juggling work and school. So I made him a special steak dinner to come home to. Tonight’s dinner is a simple one of grilled steaks seasoned with pepper, garlic powder and onion powder. To accompany it, I made a mushroom & spinach risotto. Here’s my recipe for mushroom & spinach risotto:

1-2 tablespoons beef base
4 cups of hot water
3 large cloves of garlic, minced
2 cups sliced white mushrooms
1-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 cup arborio rice
fresh ground black pepper
1 cup frozen or 2 cup fresh spinach

In a saucepan, heat water and beef base until base is dissolved for beef broth.
In a saute pan, coat the bottom with olive oil.
Add sliced mushrooms and minced garlic; saute.
When the mushrooms have caramelized, add the rice.
Stir rice to coat and slightly toast up.
Add 1 cup of beef broth to the rice and stir.
Allow liquid to reduce before adding 1 cup at a time; stirring continuously.
Continue to add broth until all is used or until rice reaches a creamy consistency.
When rice is just about done, fold in the spinach.
Season with salt & pepper to taste.

* I used a jarred beef base I got at Sams Club. You can substitute it with beef broth if you prefer.