Whenever I roast pumpkin I always roast extra, because there are so many quick, easy meal options using roast pumpkin pieces - this recipe being one of them. This delicious Roast Pumpkin Risotto is one of my go to weekday meals, and is perfect as a side dish or as a full meal.
You will need:
400g pumpkin - peeled weight (any kind of pumpkin is fine to use for this recipe)
1 bunch of spinach (can substitute any other leafy greens such as silverbeet, kale or nettle)
1 medium sized fennel bulb (can substitute onion or leek depending what is in season)
2 cups arborio rice (can substitute other short grain rice but arborio is best in my opinion)
4 cups of vegetable stock (can substitute chicken stock if preferred)
1/2 cup white wine - optional (any kind of wine is fine, it gets cooked off)
1 handful grated parmesan cheese (can substitute with most other cheese)
1 sprig fresh rosemary (can substitute sage or thyme)
Freshly ground sea salt & black pepper
1 tsp cumin seeds
2-3 cloves garlic
Olive oil
What to do:
Preheat your oven to 180°C.
Cut the peeled pumpkin into small cubes, strip the rosemary from the stem and toss both of these in a baking dish with some olive oil. Roast for approx. 35-40 minutes, or until the pumpkin is soft (slightly charred is fine). Alternatively, you can simply warm through pre-roasted pumpkin for this step.
Add olive oil to a large, high sided pan over a medium-high heat. Peel and grate or finely slice the garlic cloves and add to the pan along with the cumin seeds and some freshly ground black pepper. Thinly slice the fennel and add to the pan, cook for a few minutes, then reduce the heat to medium.
Add the rice to the pan (do not rinse or pre-cook the rice) and cook this for 10 minutes, stirring frequently, then add the white wine and stir constantly, until the wine is completely absorbed.
Next add the vegetable stock, 1/2 a cup at a time, stirring frequently until the stock has completely absorbed before adding the next 1/2 cup of stock. Continue doing this until you have added 3 cups of the stock.
Finely slice the spinach, and add this to the pan along with the last cup of stock, again adding this half a cup at a time, stirring and waiting until the stock is fully absorbed before adding the next 1/2 cup.
Once the last measure of stock has been completely absorbed, check the consistency of your risotto. It should be thick and creamy, and the rice should be cooked al dente - soft but firm and just a bit chewy in the centre. If the rice is not quite cooked, add a little more stock (or water), stirring until absorbed then check again and repeat if necessary until the desired consistency is achieved.
Remove the pan from the heat and stir through the grated cheese (reserve a little for garnish if you like) and freshly ground sea salt to taste. Finally, gently stir through the roast pumpkin cubes, garnish with a little grated cheese then serve immediately, enjoy!