This time of year fresh fruits and vegetables are hard to find. The oranges I bought the other day were from South Africa and my tomatoes were from Brazil. It is hard to buy local when you live in a cold climate. Especially in a place like Connecticut that gets slammed with 9 inch snow storms in October! Yuck!!! You can however find one type of vegetable everywhere and that is SQUASH. I was never much of a squash fan growing up. I like zucchini and yellow squash, but never really knew what to do with the spaghetti, acorn and butternut varieties. My mother always would roast them with butter and salt and pepper, which was okay, but nothing that I craved. I picked up two butternut squash at a local farm stand for 1.00 each. If you are not sure what a butternut squash looks like here is a picture.
To prepare a butternut squash you must peel it. (I used a vegetable peeler) Cut it in half, scoop out the seeds and then cut it into bite size pieces. I have 2 amazing recipes for you coming up this week. The first Roasted Butternut Squash Saffron Risotto and then Roasted Butternut Squash Goat Cheese Ravioli with a brown butter, caramelized onion, bacon sauce. And yes…they are ww friendly!!! So the next time you see those strange looking squash in the grocery store, grab one! They are delicious and really good for you!!
Saffron Butternut Squash Risotto
(Adapted from Ina Garten’s Recipe)
Serves 6
Ingredients
- 1 butternut squash (2 pounds)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 6 cups chicken stock
- 4 tablespoons or ½ stick of butter
- 1/2 cup minced onions
- 1 1/2 cups Arborio rice (10 ounces)
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 1 teaspoon saffron threads ( I bought mine from Trader Joe’s – it is not expensive)
- 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Peel the squash remove the seeds, and cut it into 3/4-inch cubes. Place the squash on a cookie sheet and toss it with the olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Roast for 25 to 30 minutes, tossing once, until very tender. Set aside.
- Meanwhile, heat the broth in a small covered saucepan. Leave it on low heat to simmer.
- In a heavy-bottomed pot melt the butter and sauté onions on medium-low heat for 10 minutes, until the shallots are translucent but not browned. Add the rice and stir to coat the grains with butter. Add the wine and cook for 2 minutes. Add 2 full ladles of stock to the rice plus the saffron, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Stir, and simmer until the stock is absorbed, 5 to 10 minutes. Continue to add the stock, 2 ladles at a time, stirring every few minutes. Each time, cook until the mixture seems a little dry, then add more stock. Continue until the rice is cooked through, but still a l dente, about 30 minutes total.
- Off the heat, add the roasted squash cubes and Parmesan cheese. Mix well and serve.
8 ww points per serving
Calories 337, Fat 13 g, Sodium 1077 mg, Carbs 39 g, Fiber 1 g, Protein 10 g
