Put the dried porcini mushrooms into a large bowl and pour over boiling water (about 500ml per serving). Soak for 20 mins, then drain into a bowl, discarding the last few tbsp of liquid left in the bowl.

Crumble in the vegetable stock cube into the mushroom liquid, then squeeze the mushrooms gently to remove any liquid.

Heat the olive oil in a shallow saucepan or deep frying pan over a medium flame. Add the finely chopped onion and the finely chopped garlic cloves, then fry gently for about 5 mins until soft with no colour.

Stir in the sliced chestnut mushrooms, the dried mushrooms and the thyme leaves. Season with salt and pepper and continue to cook for 8 mins until the fresh mushrooms have softened.

Tip the risotto rice into the pan and cook for 1 min. Pour over the white wine and let it bubble to nothing so the alcohol evaporates.

Keep the pan over a medium heat and pour in a quarter of the mushroom stock. Simmer the rice, stirring often, until the rice has absorbed all the liquid.

Add about the same amount of stock again and continue to simmer and stir - it should start to become creamy, plump and tender. By the time the final quarter of stock is added, the rice should be almost cooked.

Continue stirring until the rice is cooked. If the rice is still undercooked, add a splash of water. Take the pan off the heat, add the butter and scatter over half of the grated Italian-style hard cheese.

Cover and leave for a few mins so that the rice can take up any excess liquid as it cools a bit. Give the risotto a final stir, spoon into bowls and scatter with the remaining grated italian style cheese. Garnish with a few thyme leaves and more black pepper before serving.