Winter Risotto Recipes

Steps:

• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Peel the butternut squash, slice it in half, then scoop out and discard the seeds.
• Cut the flesh of the butternut squash into small cubes and put in a mixing bowl. Drizzle 1 tbsp olive oil over the squash, and season with black pepper, and nutmeg or cinnamon. Transfer the squash to a roasting tin and roast in the oven for about 25 mins until cooked through, then set aside.
• Heat the remaining oil in a large saucepan over a low heat. Add the onion and cover the pan with a tight-fitting lid. Allow the onion to cook without colouring for 5-10 mins, stirring occasionally.
• In a measuring jug, make up 1.5 litres of stock from boiling water and the stock cube. Stir well until the stock cube has dissolved. When the onion is soft, remove the lid and add the garlic to the onion pan. Leave it to cook for 1 min more.
• Rinse the rice under cold water. Turn up the heat on the pan and add the rice to the onion and garlic, stirring well for 1 min. Pour a little of the hot stock into the pan and stir in until the liquid is absorbed by the rice.
• Gradually add the rest of the stock to the pan, a little at a time, stirring constantly, waiting until each addition of stock is absorbed before adding more. Do this until the rice is cooked through and creamy - you may not need all the stock. This should take 15-20 mins. Take the roasting tin out of the oven - the squash should be soft and cooked.
• Add the squash, peas and sweetcorn to the risotto and gently stir it in. Season to taste. Take the risotto pan off the heat and stir in the Parmesan and herbs. Put the lid back on the pan and let the risotto stand for 2-3 mins before serving.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425ºF. Cover a baking sheet with foil. Toss the squash with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and spread on the baking sheet in an even layer. Place in the oven and roast for 30 to 40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes, until tender and caramelized. Remove from the heat.
• Bring the stock to a simmer in a saucepan.
• Heat the remaining oil over medium heat in a large, heavy nonstick frying pan or a wide saucepan and add the onion. Cook, stirring, until the onion begins to soften, about 3 minutes, and add one third of the squash, the garlic, and about 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring, until the onion is tender and the garlic fragrant, about 1 minute, and add the rice. Cook, stirring, until the grains of rice are separate.
• Stir in the wine and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly. The wine should bubble, but not too quickly. When the wine has just about evaporated, stir in a ladleful or two of the simmering stock, enough to just cover the rice and squash. The stock should bubble slowly. Cook, stirring often, until it is just about absorbed. Add the sage and another ladleful of the stock, and continue to cook in this fashion, not too fast and not too slowly, adding more stock when the rice is almost dry, for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the rice is cooked al dente. Taste and adjust seasonings.
• Add the remaining roasted squash and another 1/2 cup of stock to the rice. Stir in the Parmesan and parsley, and immediately remove from the heat. Add freshly ground pepper, taste one last time and adjust salt. The rice should be creamy. Serve at once.

Steps:

• Cut squash into medium size pieces, scrape out seeds and stringy flesh and discard. Steam cleaned pieces of squash for 10 to 15 minutes until tender. Remove skin and mash smooth. Place stock in a saucepan and heat until simmering. In a large heavy saucepan over medium heat, fry bacon piece until crisp. Remove bacon, leaving grease in the pan. Crumble bacon for use as a garnish and set aside. Add oil and shallots and cook for about 2 minutes. Stir in the rice and cook for 5 minutes over moderately high heat. Stir slowly but constantly. This will "toast" the rice and start to turn it slightly golden and feel loose and dry. You should start to hear the rice "click." Add the wine all at once to the rice and cook over fairly high heat to boil it down. When the rice is almost dry, stir in 1 cup of stock and mashed squash. Simmer until the sock is absorbed. Continue adding stock 1 cup at a time and stirring until rice becomes creamy while the grains remain separate and firm, but not hard in the center of the grain. This should take about 15 to 20 minutes. Add the nutmeg, salt, pepper and rosemary and stir. Stir in the butter and 1/2 cup Parmesan. Place in individual serving bowls and sprinkle with remaining cheese, crumbled bacon and a sprig of rosemary. Enjoy! Yield: 4 to 6 main course servings
• Hints for success: The pot must be heavy on the bottom to keep the temperature even during the cooking process. Arborio is a short grained rice. It is very starchy, which is necessary to produce the desired result of a creamy risotto. Look for a fat opaque center in the rice, known as "LaPerla," this indicates a good starch content. Wine is the first liquid to be added to the rice. The first liquid will be absorbed totally and the acid in the wine balances the starch and adds flavor.
• Toasting the rice seals in the flavor. There should be about 3 times the amount of stock as rice. Make sure the stock is very hot. The stock is added slowly to the rice and releases the starch gradually, creating a creamy texture. Constant stirring is needed to produce the best results

Steps:

• Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a 7-liter pressure cooker over medium-high heat. Add the onion, garlic, the 1 teaspoon salt, and the pepper to taste and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables soften a bit, about 5 minutes. Add the rice and stir to coat. Stir in the carrots, thyme sprigs, celery root, squash, if desired, chicken broth, and wine.
• Close the pressure cooker lid and bring the pressure up to high (which can take up to 10 minutes), then reduce the heat to maintain an even pressure for 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and press the cooker's pressure indicator stem until no more steam comes out.
• Carefully remove the lid--the risotto will look a bit soupy at this point. Stir the mustard greens into the risotto, then let the mixture sit until the greens wilt, about 2 minutes. Stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons butter and the 1 cup cheese. Season to taste with salt and pepper, if you like. Pass additional grated cheese at the table.

Steps:

• Cook yam in 1/2 cup water over moderate heat in a sauce pan until tender (approx. 15 min.) Saute garlic and shallot in olive oil until soft Add rice and stir until coated with oil Gradually add in 1/2 cup increments the hot stock and pumpkin puree, stirring, until the rice is al dente. Add herbs, reserved yam, cheese, and salt and pepper to taste. Add grape tomatoes and allow to "steam" in the risotto for 5 minutes before serving.