Steaks & Mushroom Risotto

Brush steaks with olive oil, salt & pepper.  Grill until desired tenderness.  Leave one steak more rare than you'd normally eat.  Set it aside for the salad later in the week.

Risotto:

1 Shallot - minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 TB butter
1 TB Olive Oil
1 Cup Arborio rice
1 lg box chicken stock (pour it into a large glass measuring cup and heat in microwave until simmering then add bit by bit)
1 Cup grated Parmegianno-Reggiano cheese
Fresh cracked pepper
Sauteed Musrooms

Saute the shallot & garlic in the butter & oil until translucent and tender.  Add in rice and saute for 1-2 minutes.  Pour in chicken broth about 1/4 C at a time and stir until absorbed.  Should take about 30 min for all the chicken broth to be absorbed.  You'll be stirring it a lot (don't leave the kitchen) but you can setp away to do other stuff. 

When the rice is cooked but still has some structure left (al dente but not crunchy), remove from heat, stir in the cheese, pepper and mushrooms (if using) and serve. 

For the mushrooms:
I honestly cannot tell the difference between the Cremini (Baby Bella) and plain old white mushrooms once they've been sauteed.  So I refuse to pay the extra $2 for the fancy ones.  But you can, if you want...
I brush them (don't wash them in water - mushrooms are little sponges and they'll soak up the water & get slimy - ick), then slice them thin. 
In a large saute pan melt about 1 TB butter and 1 TB olive oil until it stops bubbling (you can add in a bit of garlic if you like - yummy!) then add the mushrooms.  They will soak up ALL the liquid right away.  Don't freak out - just leave them be -- the moisture will come back out... keep letting them cook, stirring occasionally, until they've reduced and are done enough to your taste. 

When the risotto is done, just stir in all but a handful of the mushrooms.  Then serve with the rest of the mushrooms on top.  Yummy.

I do a really simple green salad (greens, cucumber, tomato & a sliced red pepper with a vinaigrette) alongside the risotto and then slice the steak thin (goes furture, looks pretty and helps establish healthy portions) and serve it fanned out next to the mushroom risotto.

There will be steak left over for the salad on Wednesday.