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Butternut Squash and Sausage Risotto

Servings 4 people

Equipment

  • Saucepan or Dutch oven
  • Medium size stock pot
  • Large size saucepan
  • Medium size sauté pan
  • Wooden spoon
  • Hand immersion blender or food processor
  • Regular kitchen utensils such as knives, whisk, spatula, spoons, paper towels, kitchen towels, etc.

Ingredients

  • 960 ml Vegetable or Beef Stock Homemade or Good-Quality Store-Bought See Below
  • ½ lbs. Ground Meat Preferably Pork, Italian Sausage or Lamb
  • 2 lbs Butternut Squash Peeled And Cut In ½ Inch Cubes
  • 1 Large White Onion Small Dice
  • 3 Garlic Cloves Thinly Sliced
  • 4-5 Leaves Fresh Sage Finely Chopped
  • 2-3 Rosemary Sprigs Leave out the Thicker Stems, Finely Chopped
  • 1 ½ cups Arborio Rice
  • 1 ½ cups White Wine Or Prosecco
  • ½ Cup Freshly Grated Parmigiano Room Temperature
  • 4 Oz Brie Cut in Cubes
  • 1 tbsp Poppy Seeds
  • 4 tbsp Unsalted Butter
  • ½ Cup Chopped Fresh Parsley Just the Leaves (You can use the stems for the stock)
  • ½ Cup Thinly Sliced Scallions Green Onions
  • 1 tbps Red Wine Vinegar
  • Salt
  • Black Pepper
  • Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 2 tbsp Pumpkin oil for garnish optional

Homemade Vegetable Stock

  • 1 Onion Roughly Chopped
  • 2 Carrots Roughly Chopped
  • 2 Celery Stalks Roughly Chopped

Instructions

Vegetable Stock

  • Put the ingredients in a large sauce pan and add 3 liters of cold water.
    Cook on medium heat for at least one hour minute.
    The water should slowly simmer, but never boil.

Risotto

  • Before you start cooking take the scallops out of the fridge and remove the muscle, if it’s still attached. Pat them dry with a paper towel and lay them on a plate between two layers of parchment paper.
  • In a large sauce pan or Dutch oven add some olive oil and the butternut squash on medium heat. Season with salt and pepper and cook for 5 minutes then add half of the onion, the garlic and sage. Cook for 8/10 minutes until the squash get soft.
  • Using the immersion blender, pulse a few times inside the pan to roughly puree some of the squash. This will give us a creamier texture.
    Season the ground meat and add it to the squash. Mix well and cook until the sausage is done.
  • Now it’s time to cook the risotto. Make sure the stock is hot.
    Add the rice directly to the squash/sausage mix, stir everything together, turn the heat on high and add the white wine.
  • Let the wine reduce, then lower the heat and start to add the stock a few ladles at the time, stirring continuously.
    Add salt and pepper.
  • It’s important to stir frequently and not add too much stock at the same time. Making risotto is different than boiling rice
    The rice should be cooked in around 10 minutes. Start tasting it around the 16th minute to understand the different texture.
  • When the rice is al dente (soft on the outside, but still with a bite in the middle) turn off the heat and remove the pan from the stove.
    Add the butter, the cheeses, rosemary, poppy seeds, parsley (leave some for garnish), scallions, vinegar and mix all together until the butter and cheeses are melt.
    This process is called ‘mantecatura’ and it is very important for flavor and creaminess. Cover the risotto.
  • Turn on a sauté pan on medium-high. We need the pan very hot to sear the scallops. Do not add any oil yet.
    Serve the risotto on a round flat plate and top some parsley for garnish and color.