Risotto can be one of those dishes that seems to intimidate the average home cook but really its very simple and very satisfying to serve up to your family. Practise makes perfect and this lovely flavour combination is worth practising!

Ingredients

1 ½ Ltr	Chicken stock, salt reduced, and warmed
¼ cup	Olive oil
30 g	Butter, + 50g extra
1	Onion, finely diced
2 cloves	Garlic, finely diced
500 g	Risotto rice
1 glass	White wine
1	Bay leaf
8 sachets	Asparagus, cut into 5 cm pieces
1 packet	Heller's Italian Salami, cut into strips
1	Lemon juice, and zest
4	Fennel fronds
100 g	Shaved parmesan, Plus more to serve
1 sprinkle	Sea salt and cracked black pepper

Directions

1. Heat a fry pan over medium heat with a dash of olive oil. Fry half the salami for 2-3 mins until crispy, set aside on absorbent paper.
2. In a large heavy based sauce pan heat the olive oil and 30g butter over medium heat. Add the onion and sweat but do not colour for 5-6 mins. Add the garlic for 1 min and be careful not to burn it. Remove onion and garlic from the pot and set aside.
3. Add the rice and toast it for 2-3 mins. Add the white wine and allow it to absorb giving it a stir. Add the onion and garlic back into the pot along with the bay leaf and stir.
4. Now start adding the stock one ladle at a time making sure that the stock is fully absorbed before adding another ladle. At this point you can pretty much countdown from 20 mins as this is approx. how long the process of adding ladles of stock will take. Stir the risotto as this helps create the sauce that suspends the rice.
5. Halfway through the stock ladling process add the asparagus and remaining salami. Once the rice is al dente [around the 20 min mark] remove it from the heat and stir in 50g butter, lemon zest, lemon juice, fennel fronds and 100g shaved parmesan.
6. To serve pour the risotto into a large serving dish and scatter the top with the crispy salami and more shaved parmesan.