If you want to serve a creamy and colorful first course, serve this pumpkin and mushroom risotto and you will win over your diners.
The pumpkin and mushroom combination has always intrigued me, but I never had the chance to try it because I never had both ingredients in the fridge at the same time.
This week, however, the winning combination came true, so I decided to prepare this creamy pumpkin and mushroom risotto that even made my husband go crazy, who is not a big pumpkin fan.
It’s a tasty and substantial first course, a variation of the classic pumpkin risotto, ideal for a family lunch or with friends.
Easy to prepare, it only requires a little patience for the cooking times of the risotto and pumpkin cream.
However, if you want, you can simplify this recipe by preparing the pumpkin cream in advance, which will only need to be heated before incorporating it into the risotto
In today’s recipe, I used mixed frozen mushrooms with the addition of dried porcini mushrooms, but champignons are also fine.
Prepare this creamy pumpkin risotto, a comfort food ideal for cold winter evenings, and if you want to make it gourmet, once ready, add some chopped toasted hazelnuts or crispy bacon.
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Medium
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Cooking time: 40 Minutes
- Portions: 4
- Cuisine: Italian
- Energy 621.40 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 87.80 (g) of which sugars 7.22 (g)
- Proteins 15.18 (g)
- Fat 20.03 (g) of which saturated 10.25 (g)of which unsaturated 5.49 (g)
- Fibers 3.23 (g)
- Sodium 1,119.64 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 150 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
- 12.7 oz Carnaroli rice
- 1.1 lbs pumpkin
- 1 quart vegetable broth
- 10.6 oz mushroom stems
- 3.5 tbsp butter
- 1 glass white wine
- 1.8 oz Parmigiano Reggiano DOP
- 1 white onion
- garlic (1 clove)
- as needed extra virgin olive oil
- A few leaves thyme (fresh)
- as needed salt
- 1 pinch black pepper (ground)
- chopped parsley (1 tablespoon)
Tools
- Baking sheet
- Food processor
- Pot
PROCEDURE
Cut the pumpkin into slices and remove the seeds.
Place the pumpkin slices on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper along with the thyme leaves, a light drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper, and close the foil.
Bake in a preheated static oven at 392°F (200°C) for about 30 minutes, or until the flesh is well cooked.
Remove the skin from the pumpkin and transfer the flesh to a food processor.
Blend until smooth and creamy, adding a little water or broth if needed. Set aside.
In a large pot, add 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and the garlic clove and let it infuse for a couple of minutes.
Add the chopped mushrooms and continue cooking over medium heat for about 5 minutes.
Remove from the heat and set aside.
In the same pot where you cooked the mushrooms, add 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and the chopped onion and sauté for a few minutes.
Add the rice and toast it over high heat until it starts to become translucent.
Deglaze with the white wine and let the alcohol evaporate.
Lower the heat and start adding broth, ensuring the grains are always submerged.
Continue adding broth little by little as the risotto absorbs it.
After about ten minutes, alternate the pumpkin cream with the broth, always stirring and never losing the boil.
Halfway through the rice cooking, also add the cooked mushrooms, adjust the salt, and continue cooking over low heat.
When the risotto is cooked, turn off the heat, add the butter, Parmigiano, and stir.
Plate the creamy pumpkin and mushroom risotto, sprinkle with fresh chopped parsley, and serve hot.
Follow my Instagram profile by clicking HERE
STORAGE
The creamy pumpkin and mushroom risotto should be consumed as soon as it is ready. If there’s any left, you can store it for up to one day in the refrigerator and, when ready to eat it, heat it in an oven-proof dish under the grill, after covering it with a generous amount of grated Parmesan cheese.
NOTE
If you use frozen mushrooms, you can cook them without defrosting. For dried mushrooms, soak them in warm water for 10 minutes, then drain and squeeze them. If you buy fresh mushrooms, clean the stem by scraping off the soil with a knife.
VARIATIONS
If you don’t want to make vegetable broth, you can use water instead.
Instead of baking the pumpkin, you can boil it in a pot and then puree it.
For an even more complete and flavorful creamy pumpkin and mushroom risotto, you can add sausage, bacon, pancetta, or speck.
