I was lucky enough to travel in the Czech Republic and Slovakia earlier this month with a small group of 14 wonderful people. We started and ended in Prague, my new favorite city in the whole world, escaped the crowds to travel west to Karlovy Vary (a spa town very near Germany with hot springs everywhere), and retraced our steps eastward to travel through parts of Slovakia very near Poland. It was a fantastic trip, my favorite in a long time, but people, we were in the land of meat. I held out for awhile and although my food was good, it wasn't representative of the area. And my selections were limited. In the end, I threw my hands up and ate fish when I could, and yes, meat when I couldn't. When in Rome and all that….and, honestly I needed the protein.
No, that doesn't mean I'm bringing you a meat dish here. I'm way too happy to get back to my whole grains, fruits and vegetables, thank you very much. But some of the weather we had in Prague and Slovakia was cold and drizzly, and one day we got snow – fittingly, on the morning that we traveled to see the castle where the first Dracula movie was filmed. Talk about setting the mood! Very exciting stuff for those of us who live in sunny, warm, drought-land here in California. Unfortunately, I didn't pack a heavy coat, and relied on layering up to beat the cold. And on food. I had a lot of soup there (the Slavs really know how to soup) and tucked into a creamy risotto a few times, and found it to be the perfect dinner to warm up my cold body, while a cold drizzle fell outside.
Butternut Squash Risotto with Pears and Sage
Ingredients
- 3 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil divided
- 1/2 red onion sliced into thin strips about 1 cup
- 3 cups vegetable broth
- 1 cup risotto rice
- 1/4 cup dry white wine
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese freshly grated
- 3 cups diced butternut squash, about 14 ounces
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh sage leaves
- 1 pear peeled and seeded, thinly sliced
Instructions
- Warm up 1 Tbsp olive oil in a heavy bottomed pot large enough for the entire risotto dish, and add the onions. Sauté on medium high until the onions soften, about 15 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low for another 15 minutes. Don't move the onions around very much in the pan so they have a chance to caramelize.
- Heat the vegetable broth in the microwave oven or in a separate pot on the stove. Cover to keep warm.
- Add the rice to the onions, and sauté for 10 minutes, or until some of the kernels are lightly toasted. Add the wine and salt, and simmer for 10 minutes - or until it's been absorbed.
- Preheat the oven to 400˚F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Toss the diced butternut squash in the remaining oil and roast for 15 minutes, or until tender.
- Stir 1 cup of warm broth into the risotto, stirring occasionally until it's absorbed. Continue adding broth, 1/2 cup at a time, to the risotto, always waiting until it's completely absorbed before adding the next 1/2 cup. Once the risotto has absorbed 2 cups of broth, the need to stir the risotto increases. This is the secret to getting a creamy risotto. By the final 1/2 cup, stir almost constantly. When the rice is al dente, stir in the Parmesan cheese.
- Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the sage leaves and sauté until lightly crisped, about 10 minutes. Gently add the pears to warm, about 5 minutes or less.
- When the risotto is done, fold in the butternut squash, pears and sage.
- Serve warm, immediately.
Maureen | Orgasmic Chef says
I love Prague too! I could visit 10 more times and still find nifty places to see.
Your risotto with pears sounds fantastic and it’s what I want for dinner. Thankfully I have all the ingredients in the house!
The Wimpy Vegetarian says
I completely agree, Maureen! We actually started to make a list of the things we want to see and do the next time we go. It’s the most beautiful city I’ve been to yet. Nothing really prepares you for the architecture. I hope you like the dish!!
Sam @ PancakeWarriors says
Your trip soundsa amazing, and how cool was it to go see castles!! I’m don’t eat much meat either, and this is something I’ve always been a little worried about travelling to a meat and potato oriented culture! Sounds like you made it through ok – if your warm dishes were anything like this risotto – yum!!
The Wimpy Vegetarian says
Thanks Sam! It was particularly challenging because I was on a group tour and many of the dinners choices were narrowed to 2 or 3, all meat. The kitchen would then throw a risotto together for me. When we ate out on our own, I was able to eat fish, but there weren’t a ton of veggies. The food was very good, buy very meat centric and LOTS of potatoes.
Tara says
I always love coming over here to see your wonderful recipes and this is another home run, nicely done!
Wendy @ Wholistic Woman says
LOVE risotto, and the flavors of butternut squash and sage sound great!
Suzanne says
Really a fabulous risotto, I think it sounds delicious, I just got some arborio rice, have risotto on the mind This sounds like the perfect recipe. Thanks for posting.
cheri says
I love risotto Susan, I bet this is delicious with pears and butternut squash.
Wendy, A Day in the Life on the Farm says
Oh my goodness, what wonderful flavors in this risotto!!
Renee@Renee's Kitchen Adventures says
What a fantastic looking comfort food recipe! Love the fall flavors!
Serena | Serena Bakes Simply From Scratch says
What a wonderful sounding trip! I would love to go someday! I love the flavors in your Risotto, it looks wonderful!
Liz says
Now THIS is one delicious way to warm up!!! What a gorgeous, tasty risotto!!!
Sarah Ozimek says
I would have never thought to add pears to a risotto. This sounds delicious and perfect for fall!
Bernie ~ A Gouda Life says
I LOVE risotto — what a unique spin with the pears and squash — sounds delicious!
Tara says
Yum! This looks perfect for fall. I love your photos. So jealous. Prague is on my bucket list.
mjskitchen says
Love everything about this dish! Sage just screams autumn to me and I love using it with winter squash. Great dish Susan!
Ann says
Made this for dinner last night, and it was excellent. I had some leftover butternut squash that I wanted to use, and luckily the sage is about the only thing in the herb garden that hasn’t been killed off by frost. Hubby agreed that we should make this again.
The Wimpy Vegetarian says
I’m so glad you and your husband enjoyed it so much. And I really appreciate you letting me know 🙂