There are few foods as simple and elegant as risotto. Even the mention of the word (pronounced rez-oatto) conjurs images of darkly-lit, romantic Italian restaurants with wine-lists larger than your biology textbook. The dish is deceivingly simple, though somewhat time-consuming to prepare and shares a resemblance to a dignified rice porridge. For those not familiar with the broad spectrum of Northern Italian cuisine, risotto is a flavorful dish in which rice is cooked to a consistency that is fairly creamy, yet firm enough to give some resistance to the teeth when chewing (literally al dente, in Italian.) As a hearty meal, it's an ideal dish for the chilly autumn months, especially since it goes well with vegetables of all seasons. Best of all, even if your outstanding school loans don't leave room in the budget for a night out at Waltham's Il Capriccio, all of the ingredients can be found at relatively inexpensive prices at Hannaford.

The basic steps: First, saut some fresh vegetables with garlic and olive oil in a large saucepan for a several minutes until tender. Add the rice (Arborio is best, don't even think about using Basmati or instant rice) and fry on low heat for a couple of minutes. Add a ladle of boiling vegetable stock (canned will do, boxed is better). Once the liquid is mostly absorbed, add another ladle-full, and keep repeating until the rice is tender. You generally need about 5 cups of stock for every 2 cups of rice, but depending on the brand of rice, you may need a little less or a little more. Be prepared, as this step can take 45 minutes or longer depending on how much risotto you are making. Finally, add some cheese and a quarter stick of butter for every two cups of dry rice. Remove from heat, cover for 10 minutes, and serve hot.

Don't be afraid to experiment with different vegetables. Asparagus, squash, mushrooms and leeks are all excellent choices. Adding a cup of white wine to replace some of the stock can also lead to delicious results. When picking a cheese it's hard to go wrong with shredded parmesan, but depending on the vegetables, something more pungent may be a better choice. If you're using an earthy mushroom like portobello, for example, a blue cheese like gorgonzola will make a good match. The butter is optional, but it adds to the delicious, rich taste of the dish. (By "optional," I mean "if you want to leave the butter out, perhaps you'd be better off eating a bowl of Kashi fiber twigs for dinner.")

At a recent dinner with friends, I opted for a red pepper risotto. We roasted three red bell peppers under the oven's broiler until they started to turn black, then let them cool and finally removed the skins, seeds, and stems. We combined them with a couple shallots, lots of garlic and 21 ounces of canned tomatoes. We then used 2.5 cups of Arborio rice, 6.5 cups of stock and plenty of parmesan cheese. To top it off, we sprinkled on chopped fresh basil before serving.