Roasted Acorn Squash Risotto
1 acorn squash, seeded and halved
3 cups vegetable broth + 1/2 cup water, divided
8 vegan sausage links
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 sweet onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
freshly grated nutmeg, to taste
1 1/2 cups arborio rice
1/2 cup dry sherry, optional
pepper, to taste
pecans, chopped, for garnish
fresh parsley, chopped, for garnish
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Oil a baking sheet well. Roast the acorn squash by placing the 2 halves cut side down on prepared baking sheet. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until fork tender.
2. Remove from the oven, and let cool for a few minutes. Scoop out the roasted squash from the skins and set aside. Warm the broth and water. Spray a nonstick skillet with olive oil and heat over medium heat. Gently fry the vegan sausages until they are golden brown. Remove from heat and set aside.
3. In a heavy saucepan, heat the olive oil on medium heat, and sauté the onion and garlic for 3 minutes. Add the curry, spices, and arborio rice and stir well, until the rice is coated. Stir and cook for about 5 minutes. Add the sherry, and 1 cup broth, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer uncovered, stirring frequently for 7-8 minutes.
4. When most of the liquid is absorbed, add the remaining broth 1 cup at a time, stirring and simmering until each cup of liquid is absorbed before adding the next one. (The whole process should take about 20-25 minutes.) When the final cup of liquid is mostly absorbed, add in the roasted squash and mix well.
5. Break up the sausages into bite-size pieces, and add them in. Continue stirring with a wooden spoon until the rice is creamy, yet still retains some bite. Add freshly ground pepper, cover and set aside for a few moments before serving. Risotto likes to rest a bit before you indulge! Warm up 4 serving bowls, spoon this delicious risotto into the bowls, and garnish with some chopped pecans and fresh parsley.
SO HOW'D IT GO?
very decent.
i changed some ingredients a bit:
* used summer squash insted of acorn - all i had
* mushroom broth
* walnuts instead of pecans
i think this needs more salt, like teaspoon. or maybe it's just my broth.
I didnt add the sausages but this was delicious! we had no problem with it getting lumpy - just had to stir it constantly.. it helps if you have someone to pass the stir duties off to. also, i put some plastic wrap over the halved and seeded squash and just microwaved it.. it took about 15 minutes to get them perfectly soft. The only thing this recipe is in need of is some salt, so don't forget to add some. i'd definitely make this again, it'd be perfect for thanksgiving!
This tasted good, and was very rich. I didn't have sausage and instead used a package of vegan chicken strips, fried up and chopped into bits.
With risotto, how do you keep it creamy and not have it turn into a giant clump in the end? The final result was rather clumpy -- but tasty!
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