A short time before I became a mom, left my job as a banker and went to culinary school, I attended a cooking demonstration at Davio’s, a restaurant located in Brookline Village just outside of Boston. At the time, Davio’s had just a few locations and served consistently delicious Italian food in an intimate setting. My family and I still go to Davio’s on occasion today and despite changes to its format, the restaurant still delivers a solid dining experience.
Anyway, I remember being so excited to go to class and learn something from an actual chef, rather than from the pages of my cookbooks. I was even more inspired when I returned home with the two recipes made for us that evening, Pollo all Rosmarino with Charred Tomatoes and Summer Risotto. I kept the actual hand-outs and to this day (and there have been a lot of days between that class and now), I still make Summer Risotto, studded with sauteed zucchini, summer squash, Parmesan cheese and fresh basil on a regular basis.
Rice dishes serve as comfort food for many cultures and Risotto is no different. Learn the basic technique, give the rice some love and you can make dinner for your family in about a half-hour or so. Like with pasta, risotto is the perfect vehicle for almost anything you have in your fridge or pantry. Try it with roasted red peppers, leftover shredded chicken and basil. Or how about sauteed mushrooms, crumbled Italian sausage and chives?
My recipe for Butternut Squash Risotto is a mashup of many I’ve tried over the years including some from the Food Network and Marcela Hazan. Butternut squash is peeled, diced and roasted in the oven with a little olive oil, light brown sugar, salt and pepper until caramelized. A basic risotto recipe is prepared and tossed with the squash, Parmesan cheese and fresh sage for an earthy, Fall dish that your family will love as dinner’s main feature or as a side dish.
I hope you enjoy this recipe soon and please let me know what you think in the comments!
A friend recently asked me to show her how to prepare a squash so let’s see if I can do the process justice with photographs! The flavor of a freshly peeled squash is worth the time, but you can also use pre-cut if that is easier.
Remove the top and the tail with a very sharp knife…
Cut the squash where it “gets its hips” or in other words, where it starts to form a bulb…
This separates the sections of the squash with and without seeds as you can see below…
Cut the part of the squash with seeds in half. Easier to scoop them out. Now you see them…
Now you don’t! You can discard the seeds or save them to roast for a snack…
Place the squash cut side down on a flat surface. Run your sharp knife along the length of the squash to remove the skin. You can also do this with a vegetable peeler if you prefer…
Dice the squash into 1/2 inch pieces being careful not to make them too small or they will shrivel in the oven…
Toss the cubed squash with olive oil, light brown sugar, kosher salt and pepper. Roast for about 20 minutes until caramelized. It’s hard to resist eating these right away because they are like candy! Roasting and the addition of brown sugar brings out the natural sweetness of the squash…
This is most of the rest of what you need, including Arborio rice, a shallot, fresh Parmigiano Reggiano cheese and fresh sage. If you don’t like sage, you could substitute chives or Italian flat leaf parsley.
The process of making risotto starts with sautéing a shallot in some butter, adding the rice directly into the pan and toasting it for about a minute until most of its surface is covered with the fat. Once that process is complete, warm stock is added to the rice one ladle at a time, until the rice is done to your liking (20 minutes and the rice will still be al dente, but you can cook it longer with additional broth if you want it to be softer).
After the rice has cooked for 20 minutes, it will plump up and be nice and creamy…
Off the heat, add in the cheese, a little additional butter, the squash and the sage. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve in a pretty dish – you deserve it!
See you next week!
Ingredients
- 1 butternut squash (about 2 1/2 pounds)
- 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 1/2 teaspoons light brown sugar
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 small onion or 1 large shallot, minced
- 1 1/2 cups Arborio rice
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons finely chopped sage
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
- Peel and seed the butternut squash. Cube squash into 1/2 inch pieces. You should have approximately 5 cups (roast any extra for snacking!). Place squash on a sheet pan and toss with olive oil, brown sugar and a sprinkling of kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Roast squash for approximately 20 minutes or until tender. Remove squash from oven and set aside.
- In a medium saucepan, warm the chicken broth over medium heat. Turn heat to low. Do not allow broth to boil (so it doesn't evaporate).
- In a large, heavy saucepan (preferably with a rounded bottom), melt 2 Tablespoons of the butter. Add the onion and cook until opaque. Add rice to saucepan and stir to coat with the butter. Add a ladle of the warm chicken broth (approximately 1/2 cup) to the rice and stir constantly until the broth is almost completely absorbed. Continue adding the broth, one ladle at a time until all the broth is used up and the risotto has a creamy consistency. It is important to continuously stir the risotto and to wait until most of the broth is absorbed by the rice before adding additional liquid. The entire process should take approximately 20 minutes.
- Turn off the heat. Stir in roasted butternut squash, Parmesan cheese, the remaining Tablespoon of butter and the sage. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste.
Tips from The Kitchen Scout
After 20 minutes of cooking, your rice will be al dente. If you like it a little softer, you can add more stock and cook it for 5 to 10 minutes longer. If you don't like the flavor of sage, you can substitute chives or flat leaf parsley.
Can’t wait to try this! Risotto is a favorite staple in our house. And Joe and I were regulars at the Davios in Brookline Village. loved it! We had a 3 family Victorian just up the street behind St. Mary’s church (where my grandparents, Irish immagrants, were married). We spent a decade enjoying Brookline Village. We were also very fond of Murphys! Our yellow lab Bailey however took every solo opportunity to make his way to the local Dunkin Donuts for handouts… Wow, thanks for the recipe and trip down memory lane! 🙂
What a great comment and story, Suzanne! Love all this history! I hope you enjoy the recipe!
This looks delicious. I love butternut squash risotto. I usually add some chopped kale and walnuts when it has about ten minutes left to cook. Good autumn vibes.
Mmmm. That sounds delicious. Will have to try that next time, Marty!
You have created a “living cookbook”…..that reads as a novel.
A gift.
Thank you
Thanks, CC. That is so nice of you to day. I am so flattered!
Thanks, Val, for this terrific recipe and the play by play for roasting the squash. Tis will be served at Sunday dinner this week!
Thank you, Sarah! I hope the family enjoys it!