Ingredients

Step by step

1. Heat the butter and olive oil in a saucepan, add the onion and cook for a few minutes until just beginning to soften. Add the garlic and thyme and cook for a minute longer.
2. Stir in the chopped fennel and cook for 5 minutes until beginning to soften. Add the rice, mix well with the onion and fennel and cook for a couple of minutes, then turn up the heat, pour in the wine and allow to bubble rapidly until it has been absorbed by the rice, about 3-4 minutes. You can replace the white wine with vermouth to accentuate the fennel flavour. Use just 150ml dry vermouth, as it has a stronger flavour. There's no need to increase the amount of stock.
3. Meanwhile, heat the stock in a separate saucepan and gradually add to the rice, a ladleful at a time, allowing each ladleful to be absorbed by the rice before adding the next one. Keep doing this, stirring frequently, until all the liquid has been added and absorbed – this will take 16-18 minutes.
4. Finally stir through the mascarpone and Pecorino Romano, then season to taste. Cover and allow to sit for a few minutes before serving.
5. To make the crumbs, melt the butter in a frying pan. Add the breadcrumbs and cook over a medium heat for 3-4 minutes until starting to turn golden and crunchy. Stir in the garlic and cook for a further minute then remove from the heat, tip into a bowl and add the lemon zest and Pecorino Romano and toss everything together well. Finally, stir in the chopped parsley.
6. Ladle the risotto into warm serving bowls, sprinkle with some of the crisp garlic and lemon crumbs and the reserved fennel fronds and serve immediately. Hand the rest of the crumb topping around in a bowl.