Baked Butternut Squash Risotto
with chard / pecans
This weeknight-friendly recipe for butternut squash risotto was such a hit with our community last year that we are bringing it back! This time we are serving the chard on the side, thanks to the feedback from our community members. See why everyone loves the roasted spiced pecans!
Ingredients
- Egg whites - 1, beaten
- Foil - for cooking
- Pecan halves - 1/2 cup
- Sugar, light brown - 2 tsp
- Cinnamon - 1/2 tsp
- Salt - 1/2 tsp
- Red pepper flakes (opt) - 1/2 tsp
- Onions, medium - 1, chopped
- Butternut squash - 3 cups, cubes (look for pre-cubed to save time)
- Cheese, Parmesan - 3 oz, grated
- Oil, olive - 1 Tbsp
- Italian seasoning - 1/2 tsp
- Rice, Arborio - 1 cup
- Wine, white - 1/2 cup (sub stock)
- Stock, any type - 4 cups
- Butter - 2 Tbsp
- Garlic - 2 cloves, thinly sliced
- Chard, any type - 1 bunch, chopped, leaves and stems separate
- Butter - 1 Tbsp
- Lemon juice - 1 tsp
Nutrition Facts
Prep
- Onions / Squash (if not using pre-cubed) / Garlic - (If prepping right before cooking, get oven heating before continuing prep.) Prep as directed. Store separately. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
- Cheese / Chard - Prep as directed. Store separately. (Can be done up to 2 days ahead)
- Egg whites - Beat with a fork until frothy.
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Make
- Heat oven to 300F / 149C.
- Line a sheet pan with foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray.
- Combine pecans with egg whites. Add sugar, cinnamon, salt, and red pepper flakes (if using) and mix well. Spread pecans on prepared sheet pan.
- Bake, shaking the pan halfway through cooking, until pecans are golden and crisp, ~20 minutes.
- While pecans roast, heat a Dutch oven with a lid over medium heat. Add butter and then chard stems to melted butter. Saute until stems soften slightly. Stir in chard leaves and garlic. Saute for 2 minutes more.
- Season chard with some salt and pepper. Set aside and cover to keep warm.
- Return Dutch oven to heat. Add oil and then onions. Saute until soft, 2 to 3 minutes. Add Italian seasoning and rice and saute until rice is shiny, 3 to 4 minutes.
- Add wine and simmer until most of the wine is absorbed, ~2 minutes.
- Add stock and squash. Season with some salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and boil for 2 minutes.
- Give risotto a stir and cover with the lid.
- Transfer the covered risotto to the oven and increase the heat to 425F / 218C degrees (make sure the pecans are out of the oven before you increase the heat). Bake risotto until all of the liquid is absorbed, ~25 minutes.
- When risotto is nearly finished, reheat chard in the microwave or in an oven-safe dish in the oven. Squeeze lemon juice over top.
- Remove risotto from the oven and stir in butter. Taste and season with some salt and pepper.
- Serve risotto with cheese and spiced pecans on top. Enjoy chard on the side.
Nutrition Facts
Reviews
Ratings
28 reviews
I loved the nuts and the risotto. I accidentally put too much butter in the chard so it was weirdly heavy. It also cooked down so much that 4 servings didn't seem to go very far.
0 HelpfulWe use half squash purée and half cubes and only a pat of butter, and the risotto is still incredibly rich and delicious! If you need a short cut, leaving out the nuts and popping in some dried cherries or golden raisins works beautifully too.
0 HelpfulThis was so good, and worked great in the Instant Pot (made the chard first). Used oil instead of eggs for the nuts, and used the "chard" as a topping, only I subbed a curly (lacinato maybe?) kale. Now I *slice* garlic all the time instead of mincing it. So good!!
0 HelpfulEverything in this was really good (even the chard!), though I found the texture of the nuts a little off-putting. Next time I'll just use oil instead of egg whites.
0 Helpful