One of my favorite combinations involves pumpkin and walnuts; if we then add soft and sweet gorgonzola, the result is extraordinary. I combined all of this in a risotto that literally disappeared, along with the “scarpetta” of the plate.
- Difficulty: Very Easy
- Cost: Medium
- Preparation time: 40 Minutes
- Portions: 4/5 people
- Cooking methods: Stove
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter, and Spring
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups Carnaroli Rice
- 1.75 oz Gorgonzola (aged and lactose-free)
- 3/4 oz Walnut Kernels
- as needed Vegetable Broth
- 8.8 oz Cleaned Pumpkin
- as needed Fine Salt
- as needed Onion
- as needed Turmeric Powder
- as needed Pepper
- as needed Dry White Wine
- as needed Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Preparation
1) Prepare the vegetable broth (about 3 cups) with onion, celery, carrot, a few cubes of pumpkin, and a pinch of turmeric powder. Starting from the first boil, let the vegetables cook for 10 minutes, then turn off.
2) Clean the pumpkin from the skin, seeds, and filaments. Cut it into rather small cubes.
3) In a large pan, sauté a slice of finely chopped onion over low heat in a generous tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil. When the onion is completely wilted, increase the heat (medium flame), add the rice, and let it toast until it becomes translucent. Stir continuously, without leaving the rice unattended.
4) Wet with wine and let the alcohol evaporate, add the pumpkin cubes, salt, and start wetting with the broth. Add broth as soon as the previous one has almost completely absorbed, continuing to stir. Add less and less broth as the rice reaches cooking. Adjust salt.
5) When the rice is al dente and the broth completely absorbed, forming that sort of cream that characterizes risottos, turn off the heat, remove the pan from the stove, and stir in the walnut crumble and gorgonzola. Let the cheese melt with the heat of the risotto, cover the pan, and let it rest for a couple of minutes before serving.
