Stormy autumn weather calls for hearty home made food. Italians know how to put the season on your plate; try this squash risotto with goat cheese on a typical Vancouver rainy day. Making a risotto does not take as much time as you might think, but it does require attention and a lot of love. Almost constant stirring encourages the rice to release the starch this dish needs to be creamy and delicious without adding any cream.

Ingredients

A dreamy home made risotto.

• 2 tbsp butter

• 1/2 white onion, cut into small dice

• 1/3 cup white wine

• 1/2 cup arborio rice

• 7 cup vegetable stock (homemade or from a cube)

• 1 small butternut squash, peeled and diced

• 2 garlic cloves, crushed

• 2 rosemary sprigs

• 200 g soft goat cheese

• pumpkin seeds

Method

1. Set up a pot of your stock on the back of your stove. Make sure the stock is hot (nearly boiling). You don’t want to cool down the rice when you add it to the pot.

2. Preheat oven to 400F. Toss the squash, crushed garlic and rosemary with olive oil in a large bowl. Season with salt and black pepper and spread out on a baking sheet. Roast until soft inside and nicely coloured on the outside. This should take about as long as cooking the risotto.

3. Take a heavy bottomed pot on medium high heat and melt the butter. Add the onion and cook until translucent. Add rice and stir until warmed up and coated. Deglaze with the wine, stir until the wine has evaporated. Add your first ladle of vegetable stock (if you are using home made vegetable stock, add a good amount of salt to the rice at this stage).

4. Gently, but almost constantly, stir the rice. When almost all the stock is absorbed add another ladle of stock, etc. Taste the rice regularly. Cooking risotto is not an exact science. It takes between 20 and 25 minutes. When the rice is cooked but has a little bite left (al dente), remove from heat.

5. Stir in half of the cheese, season with salt and black pepper. Add the roasted squash (remove garlic and rosemary) and plate. Sprinkle the rest of the cheese and the pumpkin seeds on top, and serve hot.