Tintti is an artist. She is animated, approachable and immediately ready to share her love of food while preparing her classic Risotto al Porcini. She pulls out a box filled with thinly sliced and dried Porcini. The sharp contrasts of the white flesh and brown skin combined with the perfect shape of the mushrooms fills me with excitement as she explains in all simplicity that she picks them every year in the fall in Nurmijarvi. I have always admired how Finnish people are so literate when it comes to enjoying  the bounty of Finland’s wildfood.

“Find an older Spruce!”

she advises, while the fragrant harvest piles neatly on the table.

She shows me a picture of herself standing behind a mountain of a giant Porcini from a particularly bountiful fall of 2010 and recalls the many dishes made with this Manna from earth! On the kitchen counter, a bottle of sharp Alsacian Riesling awaits for its perfect destiny and the intoxicating smell of freshly grated parmesan lifts the room.

“I have so many recipe books;  I just love reading about the story behind the recipe!” When asked about her Food hero, she responds without a doubt : “Jamie Oliver! His recipes are simple & beautiful, and they don’t usually take a long time to prepare. I respect his attempt to bring people back to the roots of food – To understand where ingredients come from, and his way of cooking without boundaries”. Tintti’s job as a Make-Up artist has taken her to many exotic places for Spring and Summer Fashion weeks; from her travels she has learned to play with different ranges of flavor with her three favorites kitchen I’s: “Indian, Israeli & Italian”.

She stirs the risotto, her wrist movement is precise & regular, the simple gesture is almost hypnotic and a sense of relaxation fills the room.

“I have made this recipe so often and i so many different settings,  I could probably make it while asleep at this point!”

she laughs. And I believe her. The end result is a creamy, gorgeous bowl of delicious risotto, all the ingredients blending together to create the dish’s simple perfection

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The Recipe: Tintti’s Risotto Al Pocini,

Ingredients: (For 6 people as a starter or 4 people as a main)

• 1 handful dried and sliced Porcini, (if using fresh you can slice 2 medium size Porcini)
• 2 cubes of stock (vegetables or chicken) – about 1.5 liter of  home made stock
• 1/2 dl full fat cream
• 2 handfuls grated parmesan
• 1 small onion minced
• 3.5 dl Arborio Risotto Rice
• 1 dl dry white wine

Steps:

• Pre-boil water and add some cold water and soak the mushrooms for approximately 15 minutes – (you can keep the water for some added flavor later!) – you can cut them in bite size pieces
• Prepare the chicken stock: About 1 liter of water for 2 cubes (Tintti’s tip:  it’s better to have more stock than less!)
• Melt 1 table spoon of butter (you can use olive oil)  in a frying pan and add the rice & minced onion at medium heat, leave until translucent
• Add the white wine and mix for a minute,
• Add the Stock on the rice gradually with a ladle while mixing with a wooden spoon continuously
• Add some pepper and salt – be careful with the salt as parmesan & the stock cubes maybe be already salty
• Add 2 ladle full of the Mushroom stock and add the mushroom
• Add the grated parmesan –
• Add the cream

Serve as a side dish with a sirloin steak or a beautiful piece of Filet. If you prefer Fish, it also works well with Salmon or Ahven – “whitefish”  or as a main dish and even a starter!

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