Baked Butternut Squash & Sage Risotto
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Total: 60 mins
This hearty risotto is brimming with tender seasonal butternut squash and courgette. They’re baked with plump grains of rice, buttery pine nuts and fresh sage, and finished with a rich splash of soya cream folded through before serving.
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808 kcal
(per portion)
Ingredients you'll need
  • 1 butternut squash
  • 2 onion
  • 2 courgette
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • 2 vegetable stock cube
  • 400g risotto rice
  • A handful of sage, leaves only
  • 1 x 20cl soya cream
  • 50g pine nuts
  • 100g rocket
From your kitchen
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • Sea salt
  • Freshly ground pepper
  • 800ml boiling water
You'll need
  • Vegetable peeler (optional)
  • Large pan or casserole dish with lid
  • Baking tray (optional)
  • Ovenproof dish (optional)
Step by step this way
  • 1.

    Preheat your oven to 200°C/Fan 180°C/Gas 6. Chop the top half off the butternut squash (see our tip for what to do with the bottom half). Trim off the stalk. Chop the squash into small chunks, around 1-2cm across. You don't need to peel the squash, unless you prefer to.

  • 2.

    Peel and finely chop the onion. Roughly chop the courgette. Warm a large pan or casserole dish on a medium heat for 2 mins, then add 1 tbsp olive oil, the squash, onion and courgette. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper. Cover with a lid (use a baking tray if you don't have a lid) and sweat the veg for 5-6 mins, stirring occasionally, till they're starting to soften.

  • 3.

    While the veg sweat, peel and grate or crush the garlic. Fill and boil the kettle. Crumble the stock cube into a jug and stir in 800ml boiling water to dissolve it.

  • 4.

    Stir the garlic and rice into the veg. Cook, stirring, for 2 mins, then pour in the stock. Stir everything together, bring to the boil, then take off the heat. If you're making the risotto in a casserole dish, pop on the lid and slide it into the oven. If the pan you're making it in isn't ovenproof, ladle the risotto into a baking dish, cover with foil and pop it into the oven. Bake for 30 mins.

  • 5.

    Pick the sage leaves off their stalks. When the risotto has baked for 30 mins, take the dish out of the oven. Take off the lid or foil. Stir in half the carton of soya cream, taste and add a pinch more salt or pepper if you think it needs it. Scatter over the sage leaves and pine nuts. Return to the oven and bake for 5-8 mins till the risotto is tender and the pine nuts are golden.

  • 6.

    Take the risotto out of the oven. Spoon it into warm bowls and top with the rocket to serve.

  • Tip

    Love your leftovers
    The leftover butternut squash and soya cream will keep in your fridge for a couple of days. You can turn them into a quick soup. Halve the squash, scoop out the seeds, then roughly chop it. Pop it in a pan with a chopped onion or leek and a splash of oil. Cover and sweat on a low heat for 10-15 mins till soft. Pour in hot veg stock, bring to the boil and simmer for 5-10 mins, then blitz with a hand-held blender until smooth. Swirl in the soya cream, adjust the seasoning and serve.

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