Red Risotto

Three Mushrooms: Shiitake, White, and OysterKaren and I spent the day packing to move, planning to move, and carrying out activities that lead us forward to that move. At moments, I stopped to say how many days it was until our move or to note what a good job we were doing packing or how organized we were.
We even bought groceries today, but judiciously, because we don't want to move many to the new place. Karen came up with the idea for dinner, so I picked up what we needed to make a mushroom risotto: arborio, broth, Parmesan, an onion, and three kinds of mushrooms: shiitake, white, and oyster.
Before starting to cook, I created an "O, Brother, Where Art Thou?" station on Pandora, so I could listen to music I like. (Though I like many kinds of music.) Listening to these songs took me back to my days in college listening mostly to the Velvet Underground, Keith Jarrett, and bluegrass--as I said, I like many kinds of music. But only one strain of music, only one part of that life, came through, came back to me.
The risotto was a complex affair, as it always is. I like only my risotto. Restaurant risotto is always too dry, and often not al dente. The flavors are too muted too. I diced onions, minced garlic and cooked them down in olive oil and butter. Once they turned clear, I tossed in about a quart of diced mushrooms of different colors and scents. More oil. I let them soften. Had only red wine so I added some in to help cook them down.
When all of that was done, I put the vegetables aside and began with the rice. Hot oil, then the dance of rice getting used to being cooked. After the edges of the rice turned clear, I added in broth in small increments, stirring almost all the time, taking fewer dancing breaks than I usually would with music playing--because you can't leave a risotto to its own devices for long.
Tongue of ShiitakeAs I went, I decided to add other liquid sometimes in place of broth: a couple of red wines, and the deep slightly vinous mushroom broth my mushrooms and onions had made. The risotto became a red risotto, and the mushroom broth in particular enhanced the flavor. Just at the end, at the point the rice was al dente, I threw in the mushrooms mixed them dramatically into the rice, and cooked them until the vegetables were hot. Then a pile of parmesan mixed in with gusto, and we had a creamy and chewy and cheesy risotto good enough to eat.
Red Risotto (Maybe Not Pretty Enough but Good Enough)

Particularly the song "Wagon Wheel" pulled me back into the past. All those nights driving across the Smoky Mountains. Every place mentioned in the song was a place I had driven into. I remember the nights of possum eyes, the smell of honeysuckle, and the air deep as dew with water.
And I listened to the song:

So rock me momma like a wagon wheel Rock me momma any way you feelHey momma rock meRock me momma like the wind and the rainRock me momma like a south bound trainHey momma rock me

Though I always want to change the first line of that refrain to
So rock me momma like a wagon wheel Roy Rogers Garage sale coffee table
ecr. l'inf.