Recipe of the Week - 23 October 12 - Pumpkin Risotto

• 1kg butternut squash , peeled and cut into bite-size chunks
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• bunch sage , leaves picked, half roughly chopped, half left whole
• 1½ l vegetable stock
• 50g butter
• 1 onion , finely chopped
• 300g risotto rice (we used arborio)
• 1 small glass white wine
• 50g parmesan or vegetarian alternative, finely grated

Difficulty and servingsRecipe uploaded by

1. Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/ gas 4. Chop up the pumpkin or squash into 1.5cm cubes (kids- ask for help if it's slippery). Put it on a baking tray, drizzle over some oil, then roast for 30 mins.
2. While the pumpkin is roasting, you can make the risotto. Put the garlic in a sandwich bag, then bash lightly with a rolling pin until it's crushed.
3. Cut up the spring onions with your scissors.
4. Heat 1 tbsp oil with the butter in your pan over a medium heat - not too hot. Add the spring onions and garlic. Once the onions are soft but not getting brown, add the rice and cumin. Stir well to coat in the buttery mix for about 1 min.
5. Now add half a cup of the stock, and stir every now and then until it has all disappeared into the rice. Carry on adding and stirring in a large splash of stock at a time, until you have used up all the stock - this will take about 20 mins.
6. Check the rice is cooked. If it isn't, add a splash more stock, and carry on cooking for a bit. Once the rice is soft enough to eat, gently stir in the grated cheese, chopped coriander and roasted pumpkin.

Pumpkin Chutney

 Pumpkin chutney 

• 2lb (900 g) pumpkin, peeled and chopped
• 1 lb (450 g) tomatoes, peeled and chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 pint (570 ml) white vinegar
• 1 ½ teaspoons allspice berries
• 1 ½ teaspoons white peppercorns
• 1 lb (450 g) onion, peeled and sliced
• 1 ½ lb (675 g) brown sugar
• 1 ½ tablespoon salt
• 1 ½ teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 ½ teaspoons of black peppercorns

Step by Step Instructions

1. Place the chopped pumpkin in a pan and cover with vinegar, add the sliced onions, chopped garlic and chopped tomatoes.
2. Crush the allspice and peppercorns, add both to the pan then stir thoroughly and leave for about 1 hour.
3. Add the ginger, salt and sugar to the mixture and bring it to the boil slowly. Simmer for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally and taking care that the consistency does not get too much like that of jam.
4. Allow the chutney to cool, pour it into clean jars, cover and store.

Notes

This recipe originally appeared in the National Vegetable Society Bulletin.