Butternut Squash Risotto

I am so excited about this recipe for a couple reasons. I joined a food bloggers recipe swap club where every month I will be making a recipe of my choice from a fellow food bloggers page and sharing it with all of you. I love this idea and am already so excited about this club not only because I get to network with other foodies but it challenges me to make something I may not have thought of! This month I was assigned The Olive Blogger and because it's fall and I was feeling festive and cozy this weekend I chose to try their Butternut Squash Risotto recipe. I'm so glad this was my pick because it was seriously amazing - like I can't wait to make it for guests, new fall staple recipe amazing. 

Important note before you get started on this recipe, it will take you at least 2 hours to make in order to get the perfect risotto consistency. About half that time your squash will be in the oven and you can be doing other things, but leave yourself enough time to prepare :) Trust me, it is so worth the time!

Ingredients:

• 1 small/medium butternut squash (about 1.5 lbs)
• 1/4 cup butter​
• 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped or minced
• 6 cups chicken stock (I recommend using 6 tsp better than bouillon chicken & 6 cups water - but chicken brother or cubes mixed with water would work as well)!
• 2 cups Arborio rice
• 1 cup dry white wine (I'd recommend Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc... also CHEAP is A okay here, we don't need "good" wine for cooking). 
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded or grated. 
• Salt & Pepper to taste 

I did make a few minor adjustments from the original recipe just based on what I had on hand. The original recipe called for adding onion & lemon and using vegetable stock instead of chicken stock. If you'd like to follow this add in a small chopped onion with garlic when we cook it, use vegetable stock when we use chicken stock, and top with a little lemon zest at the very end. 

Step 1 Directions, Preparing the Squash:

1. Preheat oven to 400'
2. Slice squash in half long ways. Scoop out seeds
3. Lay halves face down on a baking dish and add about a 1/4 cup water to baking dish surrounding the squash. 
4. Bake 50-60 minutes until squash is browned and starts to wrinkle as pictured. 
5. Remove from oven, remove skins, mash and set aside for later. 

Step 2 Directions, Preparing the Risotto:

1. In a large pot bring your chicken (or vegetable) stock to a simmer over LOW/MEDIUM HEAT - as I learned from my fellow blogger this is so important, do not try to boil over high heat, we don't want this evaporating we just want it heated. 
2. In a large skillet add in garlic and butter and melt butter over medium heat. 
3. Add in the rice leaving heat at medium, continuously stir and fry up the rice for a few minutes until you notice the garlic and a little bit of the rice to slightly brown. 
4. Add in your wine and stir until fully absorbed. 
5. Reduce heat to low / medium/low. Add in a couple ladles of your broth a time simmering over a low heat and stirring until absorbed. This process should take a good 30-40 minutes - patience is key with risotto as Arborio rice takes a while to soften and it is also what gets us the creamy consistency that we all love in risotto. 
6. Add in mashed butternut squash, Parmesan, and a little salt & pepper, stir in until evenly combined. 
7. Enjoy!