Butternut Squash Risotto with Fried Sage

Yes. ANOTHER dish involving butternut squash, butter and cheese.

I've gone almost five days without any greens. It's sad, I know.

I'll probably go on a kale binge soon enough, but for now, all I'm craving is squash.

Risotto is one of those perfect dishes to enjoy on a nippy evening.  Comfort food to the max.

Best of all, you only dirty one pot.

You can throw in whatever vegetables you have on hand, based on the season.  I've used corn in the summer, asparagus and lemongrass in the spring and wild mushrooms whenever I can get my hands on them.  Traditionally risotto is made with arborio or carnaroli rice (arborio being less expensive and more readily available), a good stock/broth, a bit of wine and some high quality cheese.  Once you've got all of those in your possesion, you are good to go.

Butternut Squash Risotto with Fried Sage (serves 4 as a main dish or 6 as a side)

1 1/2 lbs butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1/2" cubes
1 medium onion, diced
2 c. arborio rice
6 c. vegetable broth
1/2 c. dry white wine (I used sauvingon blanc)
4 T. butter, divided
1 T. fresh thyme, chopped, or 1 t. dried
1 c. grated pecorino romano
1 1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. black pepper
10 sage leaves
1 T. olive oil

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Place peeled and cut squash in a large bowl, drizzle with a bit of extra virgin olive oil, a heavy pinch of salt and a couple grinds of black pepper. Place on a sheetpan and bake for 20 minutes, or until the squash is fork tender. Set aside.

Meanwhile, place your broth in a stockpot over medium heat. You want your broth to be warm when you add it to the rice.  The wine should be room temperature as well, so before you stash that bottle in the fridge, set a little aside first.

Heat 2 T. of the butter in a stockpot over medium heat.  Add the onion and a pinch of salt and sautee for 3-4 minutes, until it softens and becomes translucent. Stir in your rice, and cook for a minute or two, stirring constantly.  This step toasts the rice giving the final dish a pleasant nutty flavor. Add the wine and stir until all of the liquid evaporates. Begin adding your broth one ladle at a time, ocasionally stirring until most of the water evaporates.  Continue doing this until the rice becomes tender. When the reaches a desired consistency, add a bit more broth, remove from the heat and stir in the butternut squash, 3/4 c. pecorino, the remaining 2 T. butter, thyme, salt and pepper.

In a small saucepan, heat 1 T. olive oil. Add sage leaves and fry until they begin to crisp up. Drain on paper towels, then crumble the leaves into the risotto.

Serve with the remaining grated cheese and some fresh cracked pepper.
Don't forget to break out that bottle of white that you opened earlier..

Pizza with Butternut Squash, Caramelized Onions and Fried Sage

Another unconventional pizza.

No sauce. No mozzarella.

Not that there is anything wrong with that...

I just like to pimp up my pizzas with fresh seasonal ingredients.... shaved asparagus pizza in the spring and toppings like corn and zucchini at the peak of summer.  With the copious amounts of butternut squash kicking around the house (I swear I ate it at six different meals the past week) and a fierce craving for pizza.. this little gem was born.

This can come together really quickly if you have some pre roasted butternut squash on hand.  I like to roast a bunch up and use it to make a quick salad or pasta dish... or give it to my dogs for a little snackaroo. 
If you don't have any on hand, you just need to peel it, cube it, toss it with some olive oil, salt and pepper and roast it for 25 minutes or so at 425 degrees.  The most labor intensive part is the peeling and chopping, but with a good peeler and a sharp knife you should have no problem.

Now... onto the caramelized onions.. They take a little bit of time, but most of it is hands off (with the exception of an occasional stir).  They cook down like crazy so I use alot more than I think i will need. Three cups of sliced onions will yield roughly 1/2 -3/4 c. of caramelized onions.  With this pizza, the more onions, the better!

For the cheese I used nettle meadow farms fromage blanc.  It's very neutral flavored, almost like a chevre but not as creamy.. but not in a bad way.  They are a little pricy, but I like to buy their cheeses because they are local and freaking delicious.


Pizza with butternut squash, caramelized onions and fried sage (makes 2- 10" pizzas)

1 batch of thin crust pizza
1 lb. butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
3 c. sliced onion
2 c. fresh spinach
3-4 oz. fromage blanc, chevre (goat cheese) or feta
1/2 c. grated pecorino romano or parmesan
8 sprigs of fresh sage
olive oil
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 425. Place peeled, chopped butternut squash on a sheetpan and drizzle with 2-3 T. olive oil, and a liberal amount of salt and pepper.
Roast for 20-25 minutes until fork tender.
Meanwhile, heat 1-2 T. olive oil in a sautee pan over medium heat.  Add your onions, a pinch of salt and pepper and stir to coat the onions with the oil. Reduce the heat to medium low and stir onions every five minutes or so.  If they begin to stick you can add a splash of water and continue to stir.  Cook the onions for 20-25 minutes until they turn a medium shade of brown.  Set aside.
To fry the sage, heat 1/2 T. olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat.  Add the sage and fry until crispy, about 1 minute. Transfer to a paper towel to drain.

To prepare the pizza, roll out the crust. Drizzle 1/2 T. olive oil on the crust and spread out with your fingers. Add the spinach, followed by the onions, butternut squash, and fromage blanc. Bake according to the thin crust recipe above, or until the crust is browned. Crumble the sage and scatter it over the pizza along with a dusting of pecorino romano and salt and pepper, to taste

...up close and personal...

Butternut and root vegetable soup

It may look like baby food.

It's not.

It's soup.

Soups are one of my favorite fall/winter time dishes.  Throw a bunch of vegetables/ beans in a pot. Add some stock. Cook it while you snuggle on the couch, drink wine and facebook stalk people from your past.

In no time you'll have a bowl of piping hot deliciousness. 

This soups has fall written all over it.  Look closely.

Butternut squash, sweet potatoes, carrots, parsnips... some stock and a little onion and thyme.

The great thing about soups is that they can be made with whatever you have lying around the house.  I just happened to have all of these vegetables on hand. Don't like parnips, leave 'em out. No broccoli, so what.. I just added it to bump up the nutritional content.

Butternut and root vegetable soup (serves 2-3)

2 c. butternut squash
2 medium sweet potatoes
1 large parsnip
1 medium potato
3 medium carrots
1 small onion, diced
1 c. broccoli floretts
vegetable stock (or broth)
2 T. extra virgin olive oil
1 t. dried thyme, or more to taste
salt and pepper, to taste

Peel the carrots, potato, sweet potato, parsnip and butternut squash and cut into 2 inch pieces.  Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium heat.  Add the onion and sautee 3-4 minutes.  Stir in the carrots, sweet potato, potato, parnip, and butternut squash, thyme and a pinch of salt and pepper. Cook for five minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add enough vegetable stock to just cover the vegetables.  Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until the vegetables can be easily pierced with a fork (about 20 minutes). Add the broccoli, turn off the heat and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes.  Scoop vegetables, along with a little bit of the cooking broth into a blender and blend until creamy, adding additional broth if the soup seems to thick.  Pour into a separate soup pot, and repeat with the remaining vegetables. You may not use all of the broth, depending on how thick you like your soup.  Season with salt and pepper to taste and reheat if necessary.