After reading the comments on this recipe, I perused some other risotto recipes online (including the risotto primavera) and found out that people safely added more veggies to the dish, so I went with that. I was a little unsure about what kind of dry white wine would be good. Most people recommended Chardonnay or Pinot Grigio and one site specifically had pairings for asparagus risotto! Since I had Pinot Grigio in the fridge, I picked that wine.
Modifications: I added about a stalk of celery, two large mushrooms, and a small carrot (all finely chopped). I skipped the leeks and peas (I couldn't find any decent sugar snap or snow peas either. Plus, there was the paella debacle). I used "Italian-style rice" (which looks exactly like arborio rice) and chicken broth instead of vegetable broth. I also substituted garlic cloves for the garlic greens. After tasting the risotto near the end, I only ended up adding 1 tsp of butter. The taste test also involved some parmesan in one bite and goat mozzarella in the other, with goat cheese being added to the rest of the pot of risotto instead of parmesan.
Preparation: Pretty simple. It does require you to stay near the saucepan (I used a pot because I was afraid my pan wouldn't be large enough) once the rice is added.
Verdict: Creaminess without cream??! Ha-zah! Magnifico! The creaminess was nicely balanced by the parsley's fresh, slightly sharp, taste. The cheese didn't seem to be necessary and was overpowered by the rest of the dish. The asparagus was quite nice, though it would have been better if it was really good quality (nothing "local" available yet! It was a little pale due to the long trip from Mexico!).
This would go well with many things - peppercorn top sirloin, herb chicken (or chicken pancetta?) or fish.
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