In a saucepan, warm the broth. You don’t have to boil it, but warm it.

In a large saute pan with high sides, or a dutch oven, melt 3 TBSP of butter. Once melted, add shallots. Cook butter and shallots for about 2 minutes, and then add mushrooms and thyme. Cook for about 5 minutes. If it gets too dry, just add a bit more butter!

Add the rice and the remaining tablespoon of butter. This step is called “toasting” the rice and you should really smell it! Toast for about 3 minutes, or until the sides are translucent but the middle is opaque.

Deglaze the pan with white wine. This adds another dimension of flavor, but all of the alcohol cooks off. Cook rice, shallot, mushrooms, thyme, butter and wine for about 3-4 minutes, or until the wine has reduced and the pan is dry.

Slowly start adding the broth, one half cup at a time (it can be tempting to add more broth than this at once, but this is why you have your drink and music!). Stir often to keep everything moving and evenly mixed. Once the broth has been absorbed by the rice and the pan seems dry, add more broth.

Continue with adding the broth for about 30-45 minutes, or until it tastes al dente. You may end up with extra broth if it is seems al dente before it’s all gone. Cooking risotto always seems to take longer than I anticipate, but like I said, it’s so worth it!

Remove from heat and add the cheese and remaining butter. Taste and add sea salt and pepper as you wish.

Serve. Take a deep breath. Thank your farmers and the animal you’re about to eat.