Creamy Butternut Squash Risotto

I love butternut squash risotto – it is one of my favourite comfort foods, but it is often very rich, which my body can’t cope with very well. So I came up with a solution…

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsps of coconut or sunflower oil
• 1 medium onion diced
• 2 cloves of garlic chopped finely
• 1/2 a hand full of Taragon (optional)
• 1 small butternut squash pealed and grated with the seeds removed
• 2 carrots grated*
• 2 parsnips grated (this is the secret ingredient, it sweetens the dish and gives the creamy texture without making it too rich)*
• 150g of Arborio risotto rice (brown or white)
• 1 gluten free vegetable stockcube
• 50g of Parmesan grated (optional)
• 30g of toasted pine nuts (optional)
• 1 handful of crispy lardons (optional)
• 1 handful of rocket leaves (optional)

serves 2-3

*you can leave the skin on these, just wash them thoroughly before grating. The skin contains most of the fibre.

Method:

1. Place the oil in a large sauce pan on a medium heat. When it is melted, add the onion, garlic and tarragon and stir regularly to avoid the onions browning.
2. When the onions stop smelling strongly, add the grated vegetables and turn the heat up while stirring them in.
3. Add the rice and enough cold water to cover the ingredients in the pan. Stir in then leave till the water is boiling. In the mean time boil 500 ml of water separately with the stock cube.
4. When the risotto is boiling, stir in about 300 ml of the stock. Stir the risotto regularly and add more of the stock each time it absorbs it all.
5. Boil the rice for the recommended time on the packet (usually 20 mins for white rice and 45 for brown rice) then remove a teaspoon of it to taste if the rice is cooked. If it is not cooked keep adding more stock until it is cooked, you may need to add extra water.
6. When the rice is cooked and it has absorbed most of the water in the sauce pan creating a starchy consistency, stir in the Parmesan and add some salt and pepper to taste.
7. Serve then top with rocket, lardons and pine nuts.

This is one of my favourite dishes and it never fails to make me feel better when I’m ill. I hope you like it!