Roast Butternut Squash Risotto
Butternut squash makes a sublime risotto; roasted until soft and sticky its flesh makes a silky-smooth basis for an autumnal side dish.
This is a risotto to serve as an accompaniment to something protein-y; chicken or mushroom being the obvious examples, with the flavour triangle being completed with robust herbs like rosemary and sage, or bacon, garlic and roasted nuts perhaps.
The butternut flesh is roasted until softened then turned into a velvety thick purée to be stirred into the rice and slowly absorbed; hence the dish requires ‘third party intervention’ to make it a complete meal.
A well-seasoned pangrittata (deep fried bread crumb topping) would suffice and parmesan is a no-brainer, but consider blue cheese, or goat’s, and introduce texture with crispy pancetta or toasted hazelnuts.
Ingredients
(serves 4)
I x large butternut squash
2 x regular onions – very finely chopped
2 x cloves garlic – crushed
Olive oil
250ml dry white wine
650ml hot chicken stock
320g risotto rice
100g butter
100g grated parmesan
Preheat the oven to 190⁰C.
Peel the squash, then top and tail. Cut the squash in half lengthways and scoop out the seeds with a spoon.
Cut the squash into rough chunks of about an inch, then toss in a little olive oil. Spread into a roasting tin and season with salt and pepper.
Roast the squash covered with foil for 20 mins, then remove the foil and continue to roast for a further 10 – 15 mins until tender.
Tip the squash into a food processor and blitz until smooth – add a dash of stock or water if it needs loosening a little to help it blend.
Add a tablespoon of oil and half the butter to the pan over a low heat, add the onion once it’s melted and sauté gently until soft and translucent. Add the garlic and continue to cook for a further minute.
Add the rice to the pan and stir it well to combine with the onion. Add the white wine, all in one go, and increase the heat a notch.
Continue to stir the rice until all the wine is absorbed, then add a ladle full of stock and all the butternut purée; keep stirring the rice and continue to add the stock a little at a time. Start checking the rice after about 20 mins – you may not need all the stock. It should still have some bite to it, remember it will continue to cook off the heat, so add the parmesan and the remaining butter then take it off the hob once it’s al dente.
Check for seasoning.