Halloween Pumpkin & Pear Risotto

Preparation: 10 mn

Cooking time: 2 hours

Serves 6:

Ingredients:

6cl/3 tbs        sunflower oil

100g/3 oz       yellow onion

400g/14 oz     rice Arborrio or Carnaroli

25cl/1 cup      white wine

½ Lbs             pumpkin

1 tsp              cinnamon powder

2                    pears

1ltr/2,1 pint   vegetable stock

70g/2,5 oz      butter

115g/4 oz       freshly grated Parmesan cheese

To taste          sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Procedure: 

1.  Peel and cut the pumpkin into chunks and sautee in a pan with 1 Tbsp of oil, salt & pepper and cinnamon until tender than reserve. Peel and cut one pear into into small dices and save in water. Heat the stock. In a separate pan heat the sunflower oil, add the onions, and fry very slowly for about 3 minutes without coloring. When the onions have softened, add the rice and turn up the heat. 

2.  The rice will now begin to lightly fry, so keep stirring it. After a minute it will look slightly translucent. Add the white wine and keep stirring — it will smell fantastic. Any harsh alcohol flavours will evaporate and leave the rice with a tasty essence.

3.  Once the white wine has cooked into the rice, add your first ladle of hot stock. Turn down the heat to a simmer so the rice doesn’t cook too quickly on the outside. Keep adding ladles of stock, stirring and almost massaging the creamy starch out of the rice, allowing each ladle to be absorbed before adding the next. Add the pumpkin.This will take around 15 minutes. Add a good pinch of salt .Taste the rice — is it cooked? Carry on adding stock until the rice is soft but with a slight bite. Don’t forget to check the seasoning carefully. If you run out of stock before the rice is cooked, add some boiling water. Add the pear 5 mn before the end.

4. Remove from the heat and add the butter and Parmesan. Stir well. Place a lid on the pan and allow to sit for 2 minutes. This is the most important part of making the perfect risotto, as this is when it becomes outrageously creamy and oozy like it should be. Eat it as soon as possible, while the risotto retains its beautiful texture.

5.  Serve in a hot plate and put 3 slices of pear for decoration.

(You can use comte instead of parmesan)