Butternut Squash Risotto
Ingredients
1 butternut squash (2 pounds)
2 tablespoons olive oil salt and pepper to taste
6 cups chicken stock
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 ounces pancetta, diced (I used bacon)
1/2 cup Arborio rice (10 ounces)
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 teaspoon saffron (I couldn't find this so I left it out)
1 cup Parmesan
Directions
Peel the butternut squash, remove the seeds, and cut it into 3/4 inch cubes. You should have about 6 cups. We researched online and found there wasn't really a good way to peel a butternut squash. So we just cut it into cubes and cut the rind off each cube.
Place the squash on a sheet pan and toss with olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast at 400° for 25-30 minutes, tossing once, until very tender.
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 heat for 10 minutes, until the shallots are translucent but not browned. Add the rice and stir to coat in butter. Add the wine and cook for 2 minutes.
Add 2 full ladles of stock to the rice plus saffron, salt and pepper. Stir and simmer until the stock is absorbed, 5-10 minutes. Continue to add the stock, 2 ladles at a time, stirring every few minutes. Each time, cook until the mixture seems a 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. Mix well and enjoy.
Amanda's Analysis:
I was excited for this dish and was only a little disappointed in the end results. I think it was mostly due to our execution of the recipe, though. We didn't get a large enough squash so there wasn't a whole lot of squash in the dish. We could have cut the squash into smaller cubes and then John would have been a little happier (see below). I tasted the risotto before adding the Parmesan and it tasted really salty. After adding the Parmesan it was much better, but I think it was slightly too much Parmesan. Next time I will add about 3/4 cup of Parmesan. I did have the leftovers for lunch today it was still very tasty. Because I think this recipe was good but could be great with a few tweaks, I give it 5 spoons.
John's Jibba-Jabba:
I enjoy most butternut squash dishes so I was excited for this one. Cutting up the squash was definitely more difficult than I thought it would be. Also, I did not like the consistency of the squash chunks in the dish. I suppose if the chunks were much more small and not as distinguishable it would have been better. I am now very curious to find out what saffron is. This recipe calls for it and we could not find it anywhere. It sounds mysterious and delicious, two of my very favorite things. I think it is also in a song that Amanda sings sometimes. This dish was still pretty good and so far has reheated very well. I give it 5 spoons.
1 butternut squash (2 pounds)
2 tablespoons olive oil salt and pepper to taste
6 cups chicken stock
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 ounces pancetta, diced (I used bacon)
1/2 cup Arborio rice (10 ounces)
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 teaspoon saffron (I couldn't find this so I left it out)
1 cup Parmesan
Directions
Peel the butternut squash, remove the seeds, and cut it into 3/4 inch cubes. You should have about 6 cups. We researched online and found there wasn't really a good way to peel a butternut squash. So we just cut it into cubes and cut the rind off each cube.
Place the squash on a sheet pan and toss with olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast at 400° for 25-30 minutes, tossing once, until very tender.
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 heat for 10 minutes, until the shallots are translucent but not browned. Add the rice and stir to coat in butter. Add the wine and cook for 2 minutes.
Add 2 full ladles of stock to the rice plus saffron, salt and pepper. Stir and simmer until the stock is absorbed, 5-10 minutes. Continue to add the stock, 2 ladles at a time, stirring every few minutes. Each time, cook until the mixture seems a 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. Mix well and enjoy.
Amanda's Analysis:
I was excited for this dish and was only a little disappointed in the end results. I think it was mostly due to our execution of the recipe, though. We didn't get a large enough squash so there wasn't a whole lot of squash in the dish. We could have cut the squash into smaller cubes and then John would have been a little happier (see below). I tasted the risotto before adding the Parmesan and it tasted really salty. After adding the Parmesan it was much better, but I think it was slightly too much Parmesan. Next time I will add about 3/4 cup of Parmesan. I did have the leftovers for lunch today it was still very tasty. Because I think this recipe was good but could be great with a few tweaks, I give it 5 spoons.
John's Jibba-Jabba:
I enjoy most butternut squash dishes so I was excited for this one. Cutting up the squash was definitely more difficult than I thought it would be. Also, I did not like the consistency of the squash chunks in the dish. I suppose if the chunks were much more small and not as distinguishable it would have been better. I am now very curious to find out what saffron is. This recipe calls for it and we could not find it anywhere. It sounds mysterious and delicious, two of my very favorite things. I think it is also in a song that Amanda sings sometimes. This dish was still pretty good and so far has reheated very well. I give it 5 spoons.
1 comment:
Interestingly enough, I just saw something on TV about saffron. I remember that it is a spice that comes from crocus flowers. It is also supposed to be very flavorful and very expensive.
Dad
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