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By Margot Harris/For The Jersey Journal

Margot Harris for the Jersey JournalA delicious way to highlight spring vegetables in a hearty warm dish when winter is still nipping at our heels.

Tiny buds are forming on the trees, sunlight is finally warming our skin, and the geese have returned to our peninsula to scour the land for food. Oh the joys of spring! And I have been welcoming it fully by cooking with seasonal produce.

I love spring not only because we’re finally out of the doldrums of winter, but also because one of my favorite vegetables is finally at the farmers’ markets in abundance: asparagus. I try to find ways to incorporate it into dinner at least once a week.

This week’s recipe was put together on a chilly evening when my fiancé and I were looking for something to warm up with while enjoying the extra few hours of sunlight that day light savings time has provided us. Creamy, warm and easy to make both of us helped ourselves to seconds after immediately devouring our first plate.

Spring Risotto
Serves: 4

3 cups chicken broth
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, diced
12 spears asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 cup frozen or jarred artichoke hearts, roughly chopped
1 cup Arborio rice, rinsed
1 cup water
¼ cup Parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper to taste

Place chicken broth in a small saucepan and warm over low heat. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Add onion and sauté one minute until softened. Add asparagus and artichoke and sauté 1 minute. Add rice and sauté 5 minutes until fragrant and beginning to brown slightly.

Add water to pot and reduce heat to medium-low. Stirring occasionally, cook until water has evaporated. Ladle approximately ½ cup of hot broth into the rice, continuing to stir occasionally. Cook until liquid has been absorbed. Continue with remainder of broth until all liquid has been absorbed (full cooking time around 30 minutes).

Once risotto is at desired texture and broth is absorbed, add Parmesan cheese and salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot.