Curried Pumpkin Risotto

Many things happened to get me to this here recipe that I’m about to share with you. And they happened in such a way as to make me say, oh, jeez, it seems like fate that I must make this. NOW. So I did. Boy, howdy am I glad I did.

Firstly, I love pumpkin, and do not understand why it is relegated only to the time between Halloween and Christmas. That’s just not fair. Plus, you can do more with pumpkin than just pie, right? Secondly, I saw this recipe on Frugal Feeding’s blog and it made me drool. Thirdly, we went vegetable shopping in Chinatown and the pumpkins were ridiculously cheap. And finally, I got a nifty new gadget in the mail  last Saturday. Boom. Kismet. (right? is that what kismet means?) So, with my pumpkin in my hand, my inspiration in my mind, and my (magic)  bullet on the counter, I set to work in making my own pumpkin risotto.

Now, I don’t generally make up recipes by myself. Firstly because I am a baker. Not because I’m particularly adept at it, but because I love a recipe. I love directions. I crave them. And baking absolutely requires a well-honed recipe. With cooking, people always say you don’t need a recipe, but I beg to differ. If you have a good recipe, and you follow it, you will make a good meal. Almost every time. But I want so badly to be one of those people who can make a good meal by looking in their fridge and throwing things together seemingly haphazardly but with a clear idea of what tastes good with what and generally how to cook things. So I’ve been working on following recipes exactly and trying to work my way up to the point where I change a bunch of stuff to make the recipe my own, in the hopes that someday I’ll be making up my own (whole) recipes.

And this time, I did it (mostly). I got the inspiration (and the basic measurements) from the delicious looking butternut squash and sage risotto, but I’m proud to say this curried pumpkin risotto is a creation of my very own. And It turned out so well, that I have a feeling I’ll be auditioning some more of my own creations soon enough.

ps: check this post out on the magic bullet blog!!

Curried Pumpkin Risotto 

Ingredients:

1. 1 1/4 c arborio rice (300g)
2. 3 shallots, chopped (or one onion if you prefer)
3. about 1/2 medium size kabocha pumpkin (that’s the only kind of pumpkins we have around here.. but I’m sure whatever kind of pumpkin or squash you have would work just fine. It ended up being about 4 1/2 cups of pumpkin, chopped into cubes, or 350g)
4. 2 cloves garlic, minced
5. about 1 cup white wine (exactness of measure isn’t that important)
6. ~3 cups vegetable or chicken stock (eek! fail. the original measure was 700ml, and I didn’t write down how many cups that was!)
7. big hunk of parmesan (between 1/4 and 1/2 cup shredded, 60g if you have a scale)
8. 2 tbsp butter
9. 1 tsp curry powder
10. 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
11. 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (less if you don’t want it spicy at all, but 1/2 tsp isn’t very spicy)
12. a 1″ cube of fresh ginger, grated (or 3/4 tsp ground ginger powder)
13. salt and pepper and olive oil, no measurements!

Procedure

• Peel and chop all of your pumpkin into about 1 inch or so cubes. (you will puree a little over half of the pumpkin, so you could cut half of it roughly and the other half a little smaller). Toss pumpkin pieces with olive oil, salt and pepper, and roast in 400F oven for 15-30 minutes or until mostly tender. They don’t have to be completely cooked at this point, just poke-able with a knife.
• Puree a little over half of the pumpkin with a bit of water until very smooth. set aside.
• In a 3-5 quart pot, heat a good splash of olive oil over medium heat. Add shallots and garlic and cook for 5 minutes or until shallots are soft. Then add curry powder, turmeric, cayenne pepper and ginger and cook for another minute until your house smells delicious.
• Add in all your rice and cook for another minute or so, until it picks up all the color of the spices. Turn the heat down to medium-low at this point.
• Add in the wine and cook, stirring, until all liquid is absorbed. Then begin adding your stock, about 1/4-1/2 cup at a time, and cook until liquid is absorbed in between additions. When you have half of your stock left, throw in your pumpkin puree and the rest of your chopped pumpkin. Continue adding stock until you have none left and your rice is soft enough to eat (but not mush) and liquid is mostly all absorbed. Stir frequently, but you don’t have to stir literally the entire time. It will take between and hour and an hour and a half or so for this whole process
• Remove from heat and stir in butter and parmesan cheese. Taste, then add salt and pepper as needed.
• Eat and enjoy!!