Butternut Squash, Sage, and Chicken Risotto, because I said I would
Well, well, would you look at that? Months have gone by since my last post, a new year has rolled around and I haven’t actually done a whole lot of cooking in a while. I skipped Thanksgiving last year in lieu of travels to London, Paris, Toronto, and home to Los Angeles through Christmas. I wish I was better about taking photos of food, but honestly, who can think about composing a photo when there is inhaling (and some chewing, but mostly mmmmmmm-ing) to be done? Generally having a terrible memory myself, I tend to rely on my other senses to help me remember events that have taken place. So these are some of the things I remember from my travels. London: roasts - lots of roasting done here and don’t believe what you hear, the food in London was delicious. Paris: beef (tartar, burgers, steaks…the Parisians love their boeuf) and Foie Gras. Yes, yes, I know the controversial nature (and amazing, serotonin-releasing deliciousness) of foie gras. But I love it. And so does Anthony Bourdain. And it’s everywhere in Paris. Beef, foie gras, oysters and escargot…but don’t be fooled, I find that most of the restaurants in Paris are meh, but the good ones, oh man, they’re worth remembering. Toronto: seafood. All I ate was boatloads of seafood…and the best salmon Nova Scotia had to offer. Los Angeles: Mexican, Korean and In N Out. Not necessarily in that order. It was more of a constant rotation.
But I digress. A friend of mine gave me her recipe for butternut squash, sage, and chicken risotto. It’s pretty fantastic. I’ve made it a couple of times since and have used short cuts like buying frozen cubed already cooked squash (think you can taste the difference when there’s truffle oil involved? I think not) and also omitting the chicken all together - usually because I forgot to defrost before I left my apartment. I also added a cup or so of white wine as the first round of liquid on top of the rice.
2 cup arborio rice
1 1b. butternut squash, diced
1 boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut in inch pieces
4 cups chicken broth
4 cups water
3 tbsp fresh sage, chopped, plus 4 extra sage leaves
2 tbsp parsley, chopped
3 tbsp butter
3 cloves garlic - minced
1/2 cup pecorino romano or parmesan cheese
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon white truffle oil
(optional: a cup - or just enough to cover the rice - of dry white wine)
Combine the chicken broth, water, and the 4 sage leaves, and bring to a boil. Add the butternut squash, and boil gently for about 10 minutes, until the squash begins to soften. Remove the squash with a slotted spoon, reserving the liquid. Set the squash aside and keep the liquid on low heat. Discard the 4 sage leaves.
Melt the butter on medium heat nonstick pan. Add the garlic, onions and 1 tbsp sage, sautee until onions soften, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken and cook until it begins to turn white on the outside. Add the rice and stir for about 2 minutes, until the rice is thoroughly coated with butter.
Begin ladling the liquid into the rice pan, about 1 cup at a time. I used white wine as the first introduction of liquid, then used stock after. After adding a cup of liquid, gently stir the rice virtually nonstop. When the cup of liquid has been absorbed, add another cup and repeat the process.
The cooking time for the risotto (once you begin the ladling) is about 30 minutes. When all the liquid has been absorbed, check the consistency of risotto. It should be tender but still have firmness. If it seems too hard, add additional water and follow the same process until you get to the desired consistency. Note when the risotto is done, it can’t absorb more liquid, so there’s a bit of liquid left. This helps to mix in the cheese.
Stir in the reserved squash, the cheese, 1 more tbsp. of sage, pepper to taste, and truffle oil if you’re using it. Offer additional cheese and the remaining herbs for optional toppings (a pinch of the herbs add a very nice lively flavor).
