Butternut Squash and Gorgonzola risotto is a creamy, earthy and rich main dish you can make with a few simple ingredients for a cozy dinner with your family.
This Butternut Risotto is the perfect fall and winter meal it's also fabulous for special occasions or holiday meals.
This was inspired by my Risotto with Radicchio and Gorgonzola cheese and Risotto with Pears and Gorgonzola cheese on this site, and pairs well with this Chicken and Orange Salad with Cherry Tomatoes or this amazing Chicken Breast Saffron with Speck.
Ingredients
- Rice - Carnaroli rice is the best for making creamy risotto and is slightly more resistant to overcooking., however if you can find it you could use Arborio rice.
- Butternut Squash - you can also use pumpkin
- Vegetable Stock - Homemade stock is the best or use a good quality stock of your preference for a really rich flavor
- White Whine - choose a dry white wine to add richness to the risotto.
- Gorgonzola cheese - This adds extra creaminess and richness
- Onion - Use fresh finely chopped yellow or white onion
- Chopped fresh parsley - for extra flavor
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
Heat the butter in a large, heavy-based saucepan over medium heat, add the finely sliced onion and fry gently for about 5 minutes, stirring.
Add the pumpkin and let it cook for a few minutes, stirring occasionally. Add some stock, if needed.
Season lightly with salt
Turn up the heat, add into the rice and fry it for one minute until the grains become shiny, stirring continuously.Pour into the wine and let it evaporate.
Next, reduce the heat and cook the risotto adding the warm stock a little at a little, stirring, and allowing the rice to absorb it before adding more.
Continue until the risotto is ready (this will take more or less 16/18 minutes, it depends on the kind of rice).
When the rice is “al dente”, turn off the heat and add the Gorgonzola cheese.
Leave to rest for a minute, to allow the cheese to melt, then stir well everything together.
Substitutions
- Broth- instead of vegetable broth, you can use chicken or meat broth
- Butter - You can use oil; butter is generally preferred because, unlike oil, it contains a part of water, which keeps the temperature lower when toasting the rice, preventing it from "frying".
- Vegetarian - the Gorgonzola can be replaced with vegetarian cheese.
- Vegan - the entire dish can be made vegan too if you use vegan butter and vegan cheese
- Onion - you can use finely chopped shallots.
Equipment
Use a pan with a wide, thick bottom so that the rice is evenly distributed and as long as it spread the heat evenly.
Storage
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
The next day the risotto might be a bit sticky, you can reheat the risotto on the hob or in the microwave adding some broth to loosen it up.
Risotto does not stand up well to freezing.
Top tip
The onion should be browned but not burned, the temperature must always be low.
Rice Toasting is a fundamental phase to ensure that the external part of the rice, which is more tender than the internal heart, can harden slightly and during cooking allow for homogeneous cooking, the Spread the rice in the pan and toast it.
Avoid these two mistakes: using poor quality broth or worse still water (the flavor of the rice will be affected) or adding cold broth, continually blocking cooking.
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Recipe
Butternut Squash Risotto with Gorgonzola cheese
Equipment
- 1 pan with a wide, thick bottom
Ingredients
- 350 gr. Carnaroli Rice
- 1,8 l. hot stock
- 40 gr. unsalted butter
- 350 gr. pumpkin cutted in cubes
- 1 small onion
- ½ glass of white dry wine
- a few fresh parsley chopped
- salt to taste
FOR THE MANTECATURA:
- 150 gr. Gorgonzola cheese
Instructions
- Heat the butter in a large, heavy-based saucepan over medium heat, add the finely sliced onion and fry gently for about 5 minutes, stirring.
- Add the pumpkin and let it cook for a few minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add some stock, if needed.
- Season lightly with salt.
- Turn up the heat, add into the rice and fry it for one minute until the grains become shiny, stirring continuously.
- Pour into the wine and let it evaporate.
- Next, reduce the heat and cook the risotto adding the warm stock a little at a little, stirring, and allowing the rice to absorb it before adding more.
- Continue until the risotto is ready (this will take more or less 16/18 minutes, it depends on the kind of rice).
MANTECATURA:
- When the rice is “al dente”, turn off the heat and add the Gorgonzola cheese.
- Leave to rest for a minute, to allow the cheese to melt, then stir well everything together.
- Serve immediately putting on top some chopped parsley.
Notes
Storage
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.The next day the risotto might be a bit sticky, you can reheat the risotto on the hob or in the microwave adding some broth to loosen it up. Risotto does not stand up well to freezing.
Substitutions
- Broth- instead of vegetable broth, you can use chicken or meat broth
- Butter - You can use oil; butter is generally preferred because, unlike oil, it contains a part of water, which keeps the temperature lower when toasting the rice, preventing it from "frying".
- Vegetarian - the Gorgonzola can be replaced with vegetarian cheese.
- Vegan - the entire dish can be made vegan too if you use vegan butter and vegan cheese
- Onion - you can use finely chopped shallots.
FAQ
Yes, it is. Use a pan with a wide bottom so that the rice is well distributed
Of course, you can by using oil instead of butter and dairy-free cheese.
Unfortunately not, risotto must be freshly prepared.
A good Risotto requires you to continually stir, and ladle in warm broth, in order to release the starches and not break.
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