Behold the most sublime risotto comprehensible. This Butternut Squash Risotto is all-around remarkable. For one thing, it is beautiful – the saffron threads color the rice a most vibrant gold. Pieces of roasted squash add another texture and brilliant fall color. Secondly, the flavor is exquisite. Smokiness from the pancetta (or bacon), sweetness from the squash, heartiness from each grain of rice which has absorbed rich chicken stock to maximum capacity… and the floral saffron. Oh, the saffron. This dish is purely luxurious. Brava, Ina.
You’ll roast cubes of butternut squash to succulent perfection. It’s always quite the trial at our house to keep fingers off until it’s time to add it to the risotto.
Be sure and use arborio rice as it’s shorter grain and higher starch content is perfect for risotto. Long-grain rice will just turn to mush, but arborio retains it’s shape and bite:
Saffron might be the most mysterious of the spices: it is made up of the dried stigmas of flowers (each flower contains three threads) and is usually harvested by hand, making it the most expensive spice. Saffron leaves it’s mark on every dish it encounters with a vibrant, golden huge and distinct, earthy flavor. We usually get our saffron from Costco (unsponsored).
If you’re like us and don’t drink wine but use it for cooking, you can pick up a 4-pack of plastic mini chardonnay bottles (we get ours at Walmart). Each bottle is about a cup of wine and results in less money waste as when purchasing a large bottle only to use a fraction of it (opened white wine doesn’t keep for more than a few days in the fridge).
This dish is truly stunning:
Use pancetta or bacon, whichever you prefer.
The flavor is sheer decadence. As you prepare and enjoy this risotto with those you love, teach them a few things about some of the ingredients:
- Butternut squash contains lutein, which helps you have good vision.
- Saffron is also said to help your vision by keeping your retinas healthy as you age.
- Shallots have anti-viral qualities, which help keep you from getting sick.
From: Butternut Squash Risotto
- 1 butternut squash (2 pounds)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 6 cups chicken stock, preferably homemade
- 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
- 2 ounces pancetta, diced
- ½ cup minced shallots (2 large)
- 1½ cups Arborio rice (10 ounces)
- ½ cup dry white wine
- 1 teaspoon saffron threads
- 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Peel the butternut squash, remove the seeds, and cut it into ¾-inch cubes. You should have about 6 cups. Place the squash on a sheet pan and toss it with the olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper. Roast for 25 to 30 minutes, tossing once, until very tender. Set aside.
- Meanwhile, heat the chicken stock in a small covered saucepan. Leave it on low heat to simmer.
- In a heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven, melt the butter and saute the pancetta and shallots on medium-low heat for 10 minutes, until the shallots are translucent but not browned. Add the rice and stir to coat the grains with butter. Add the wine and cook for 2 minutes. Add 2 full ladles of stock to the rice plus the saffron, 1 teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper. Stir, and simmer until the stock is absorbed, 5 to 10 minutes. Continue to add the stock, 2 ladles at a time, stirring every few minutes. Each time, cook until the mixture seems a little dry, then add more stock. Continue until the rice is cooked through, but still al dente, about 30 minutes total. Off the heat, add the roasted squash cubes and Parmesan cheese. Mix well and serve.
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