"Are You a Botanist?" Risotto #MoviesandMunchies

This month Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm has the Movies & Munchies group watching Toscana.

I had watched the movie before, but I re-watched it with my foodie glasses on to be inspired into the kitchen.

On the Screen

This movie follows Michelin-rated Danish chef Theo (played by Anders Matthesen) as he travels to Tuscany because his father died there an left him a tired estate and restaurant at Ristonchi. Theo is determined to broker a quick sale and return to Denmark to invest the proceeds into his Danish establishment.

Where Theo is restrained and precise, the staff at Ristonchi is the opposite. He encounters waitress Sophia (played by Cristiana Dell’Anna) who grew up at Ristonchi and has no patience for his hang-ups. Their exchange about bottled water was silly and set the tone for their persistent cultural misunderstandings.

When Sophia tells him that they are hosting a wedding, he is critical of the original menu and agrees to cook without knowing that it's Sophia's wedding. I will spare you all the details of their push and pull that ends up with them falling into bed together before her wedding.

The food is beautiful. The property is bucolic. But the emotions of the characters falls short in my mind. Still I enjoyed the movie and was happy to watch it again.

On the Plate

As you can imagine, Theo's food is beautiful. I thought about the food he makes in Denmark, including pigeon in a nest, lots of tiny portions with copious garnishes and sauces. But I opted to make the dish he first makes when he cooks with Sophia: risotto. The title of my post is because he tops it with all sots of flowers and herbs; Sophia heckles him: "What are you? A botanist?!"

She removes all of the flowers and replaces it with mountain of grated cheese. My boys definitely opted for the second plating.

Ingredients

• 2 organic leeks, trimmed and thinly sliced (approximately 2 cups)

• 2 Tablespoons butter

• splash of olive oil

• 3 cups arborio rice

• 8 cups liquid (I used a mixture of vegetable stock, chicken stock, and white wine)

• 1 Tablespoon fresh herbs, finely chopped (I used a mixture of parsley and thyme)

• 4 ounces mascarpone cream

• freshly ground pepper, to taste

• freshly ground salt, to taste

• Also needed: edible flowers, herbs, and parmigiano reggiano for serving

Procedure

Bring liquid to a boil in a sauce pan, then reduce to a simmer and keep it on a burner adjacent to your risotto pan.

Melt butter in olive oil in a heavy bottomed pan. Stir in the leeks and cook until leeks are translucent and beginning to caramelize. Stir in the arborio rice and toast for 5 to 6 minutes. Then ladle by ladle, add in the stock until it's absorbed. Keep stirring. Repeat until the rice is cooked. If you need more liquid, just add more; if you don't use all of the stock, that's okay, too.

Stir in the mascarpone cream and fresh herbs. Let stand for five minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Spoon risotto into individual serving bowls and top with edible flowers and herbs. Serve immediately. Let diners grate parmigiano reggiano over the top.

And that's a wrap for my July #MoviesandMunchies offering.