The creamy pumpkin risotto is an autumn classic, here are tricks and tips for this dish with a round and delicate flavor. It is a simple risotto but due to the presence of pumpkin, which has a very sweet flavor, it needs to be well balanced to have a tasty preparation without covering its flavor.
If you like autumn dishes don’t forget to read the recipes:
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Very Cheap
- Rest time: 2 Minutes
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 2
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter
- Energy 540.95 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 76.18 (g) of which sugars 2.37 (g)
- Proteins 12.10 (g)
- Fat 20.10 (g) of which saturated 8.33 (g)of which unsaturated 4.77 (g)
- Fibers 1.42 (g)
- Sodium 661.42 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 5 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 for 2 people
- 1 cup Carnaroli rice
- 3.5 oz pumpkin
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 2 tbsps butter
- 1 tbsp robiola cheese
- to taste salt
Tools
- 1 Pot 3-quart
- 1 Pot 2-quart
- 1 Cutting Board
- 1 Knife
Procedure
For a good risotto you need to start with good broth, for this reason I recommend preparing homemade vegetable broth. If you don’t have time, you can opt for a quick broth made with bouillon or other preparations.
While the broth is boiling, prepare the pumpkin, which must be cleaned and cut into uniform cubes of 1/8 to 1/4 inch on each side.
Put the pumpkin cubes in a pan and sauté over medium heat, after 1-2 minutes of cooking, let’s move on to toasting the rice.
Put the rice in a pan with the pumpkin over high heat and toast, taking care to stir the rice often, it should heat evenly and you should not risk burning it.
Toasting is complete when, placing a hand a few centimeters from the rice, you feel the heat rising towards your hand (about 1 minute) do not toast too much or the rice may burn.
Since this is a risotto with a delicate, round, and slightly sweet flavor, we will not deglaze with white wine but directly with the hot broth, which must be poured one ladle at a time over the rice and added only after complete absorption.
Tip: If you want a creamy and velvety risotto, cook the pumpkin pulp separately with a glass of broth and when it is cooked, using an immersion blender, create a puree that you will add to the risotto 3-4 minutes before the end of cooking. The risotto will become creamy and thick
At the end of cooking, off the heat, add a spoonful of robiola cheese and a knob of butter to the risotto, stir gently until it disappears into the risotto itself.
Your creamy pumpkin risotto is ready!
Plating Tips:
If you want a more original and refined aesthetic impact, hollow out a small pumpkin to obtain the pulp leaving only the peel. Use the peel as a serving dish and use the pulp instead to make the recipe.
Which wine to pair with pumpkin risotto:
For this pumpkin risotto, I recommend a full-bodied red wine with good aging that can enhance the earthy notes of the pumpkin, highlighting its taste, such as a Nebbiolo from Langhe.
