<a title="Macheesmo" href="http://www.macheesmo.com/about/" target="_blank">N. from the food blog Macheesmo used to be my roommate.</a> As such, I've eaten a lot of his cooking and I trust him implicitly. He's got good taste and the thing I like most about reading his blog is that he's more adventurous than I am when it comes to everyday cooking.

For example, I like risotto but, before last night, I've probably made it twice. It's not a go to dish for me as in my mind it requires too much attention and futzing. I don't want to stand at the stove for 40 minutes stirring rice.
<a title="Homemade Lemon and Spinach Risotto by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/12461477735/"><img alt="Homemade Lemon and Spinach Risotto" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7301/12461477735_3e9d988723_z.jpg" width="100%" /></a>
Here's the thing, I read <a title="Machessmo's Risotto recipe" href="http://www.macheesmo.com/2014/02/spinach-artichoke-risotto/#more-39408" target="_blank">N.'s post Spinach Artichoke Risotto</a> yesterday morning and by dinner time I was convinced that THE ONLY THING I should make was risotto. Go figure.<!--more-->
<a title="Homemade Lemon and Spinach Risotto by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/12461680233/"><img alt="Homemade Lemon and Spinach Risotto" src="http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2839/12461680233_dd678ab579_z.jpg" width="100%" /></a>
But.... I didn't have Arborio rice. Instead I had medium grain Kroger brand rice. I didn't have fresh spinach but I did have frozen loose leaf spinach. I subbed in lemon juice (as in a 1/4 cup) rather than the juice from a real lemon and ended up with a delightfully lemony  risotto. I didn't have any canned artichokes and nothing to replace them with so I just left these out. And because I could, I poured in a big splash of white wine.

I also drank a glass of wine while I stirred the risotto. That definitely helped the time pass.

So, the risotto? It was very good. N. did not lead me astray. The lesson I learned is that risotto seems like the perfect dish to add things to. Sun dried tomatoes would be tasty. Mushrooms, dead easy. Frozen sea food, do it.