Pumpkin Risotto

Lola, author of Loleta, Life, Market and Cooking , brings us a cocotte recipe that you will really enjoy at home: a pumpkin risotto , without complications but with a delicious and very autumnal flavour. Enjoy it!

Risotto is an Italian way of preparing rice that requires patience, but is not difficult at all. The secret is to get the rice (usually of the arborio or carnaroli variety) to release all its starch, so that it has a creamy texture. To do this, you have to stir it constantly with the help of a wooden spoon.

Today we are preparing it only with vegetables, but the possibilities are as endless as your imagination.

Given the time of year and the need to make the most of the seasonal fruit, I thought it might be interesting to make a pumpkin risotto. I thought it would be an interesting combination, and it has actually turned out to be an absolutely delicious combination!

You can prepare the risotto in a shallow casserole dish, such as a Le Creuset casserole dish , or, as in my case, I used a normal round casserole dish . The heat distribution by the iron is wonderful and the cooking is perfect.

Le Creuset mini cocottes

Ingredients

• 600g pumpkin flesh, cut into very small pieces
• 50ml of La Chinata extra virgin olive oil
• 90gr of butter divided into three parts
• 4 sprigs of fresh rosemary
• 1 whole garlic clove and another very finely chopped
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 300gr of carnaroli rice
• 1 liter chicken broth, hot (for a vegetarian version, we can use vegetable broth)
• 50gr of parmesan cheese, grated
• Salt and pepper to taste
• A handful of peeled pumpkin seeds

Preparation

1. In a frying pan , heat the oil and a third of the butter, then add two sprigs of rosemary, the whole garlic clove and the pumpkin.
2. Cook over low heat for about 20 minutes or until it softens and almost resembles a puree. Remove the rosemary sprigs and garlic clove.
3. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan , heat the stock. It should be very hot when you start making the risotto.
4. In a cocotte , heat another third of the butter and fry the onion over low-medium heat until soft.
5. Next, add the rice and, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon , let it fry for a few minutes so that the oil thoroughly coats all the grains.
6. Add a ladle of hot broth and then the pumpkin mixture. Stir well until the broth has completely evaporated.
7. Add more broth little by little (one or two ladles at a time), stirring the rice all the time, and wait for the broth to evaporate before adding more.
8. When there are a couple of ladles left to add, add the grated Parmesan and the rest of the butter.
9. Serve the rice piping hot with a little extra cheese on top and a few sprigs of rosemary. Finish by sprinkling some peeled pumpkin seeds on top.

Le Creuset ceramic tureen , Le Creuset round mini-cocotte and Le Creuset round Evolution cocotte

You can serve the risotto on individual plates, or choose to present it in mini-cocottes , an excellent option given their size and the fact that it is a very filling dish.

I hope you enjoy it as much as we did at home!