rockin butternut squash risotto!

This is a truly wonderful risotto and is so easy to make with very few
ingredients.  Give it a try.  Have a “ keep it simple”  dinner of risotto and
a good parmesan or asiago  cheese and of course a glass of your favorite
wine.  Bon Appetit!  (My husband, Mike, raved about this dish and
suggested calling it “rockin risotto”!)  Why not?

Serves 2-3 as a main course or 4-5 as a side dish:

1 butternut squash
4-5 drizzles of olive oil
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 445 degrees.  Lay squash on a cutting board and cut
in half (be careful, this will take patience and strength!), then place
each half flat side down and begin peeling with a knife or a veg. peeler,
using top to bottom motion.  Once peeled, cut top half into 1/2 inch
slices and cut each slice into cubes.  Cut bottom piece in half, then
scoop out seeds with a large spoon.  Again cut into slices, then into
cubes.  Place cubes onto baking sheet, drizzle with oil, season with
salt and pepper (I tend to hold the box of salt and shake across the
pan – I like my food well seasoned – some may gasp at the amount of
salt I use, but my blood pressure is normal, possibly due to avoiding
processed foods, which are high in sodium!)  and bake 30 minutes,
stirring halfway through baking.    Remove and cover with foil to keep
warm while making the rice.

2 cloves garlic
4-5 tbsp. olive oil
2 cups Arborio rice
1 cup white wine
1 box (32 oz.) chicken broth
1 1/2 tsp. salt and 12-14 grinds fresh pepper
chunk of asiago or parmesan cheese

Heat oil in a large pot with a lid (dutch oven perhaps) over medium
and add minced garlic.  Let cook 1-2 minutes, just until golden, then
add rice and stir 1 minute.  Add 1 cup white wine, reduce heat to low
and let liquid evaporate while stirring occasionally.  Set timer for
20 minutes, which is the approximate time for risotto to cook.  Now
begin adding broth one cup at a time with the technique of adding
broth, letting it reduce while stirring occasionally, then repeat until
rice is cooked (try it for your own desired doneness).  If after 20 min.
the rice is not quite cooked and all broth is used, I add another cup of
white wine, turn down temp. to really low and cook a few more minutes.
Of course you can add more broth or even water, but the wine tastes
good!  The consistency should not be too dry, nor too liquidy!  Season
with salt and pepper, then add butternut squash, stir and heat to serve.
I put the covered pot of risotto and a hunk of cheese on the table with
a really cute cheese grater that I bought in the Amsterdam airport last
September on our way home from Barcelona (the photos of the exotic
fruits and mushrooms in the slide show at right are from a market
in Barcelona, which I visited twice, once with Mike and the second time
more thoroughly with my friend and fellow food blogger, Lynne!  We
had a great time there marvelling at the beautiful fruits and vegetables
until we were overpowered by the pungent ”scent” of fresh fish, which
sent us scurrying down Las Ramblas in search of fresh air!).   Enjoy a
simple dinner of risotto to warm your body and soul!