Pumpkin Risotto (or Risotto Alla Zucca) is a creamy, comforting, and extremely delicious autumn dish made with arborio rice, pumpkin, Homemade Vegetable Stock, and parmesan cheese. This classic Italian risotto dish is perfect for entertaining: it is elegant, easy to make, and ready in just 40 minutes!
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This gluten-free Pumpkin Risotto is perfect for special occasions such as Halloween, Thanksgiving, or Christmas. It is extra creamy and flavorsome thanks to pumpkin purée, mascarpone cheese, and butter. And the leftovers are perfect for making scrumptious Italian Rice Balls (Arancini) for your next dinner party!
Why This Recipe Works?
- This restaurant-style Pumpkin Risotto dish is delicious, filling, and ready in just 40 minutes!
- It is the perfect dish to serve whether it is a romantic dinner for two or a big family dinner on special occasions such as Halloween, Thanksgiving, or Christmas.
- The risotto alla Zucca recipe is perfect to use up leftover pumpkins from Halloween!
- It is made with autumnal flavors and is the perfect dish to enjoy on a cold evening.
- You can keep the leftovers for up to 5 days refrigerated in an airtight container.
- Or you can transform the leftover Pumpkin Risotto into arancini (risotto balls) and freeze them for your next dinner party!
Ingredients and Substitutes
Risotto Rice
The most important ingredient for risotto is the rice and to get the perfect results each time, choose the right type of rice.
Carnaroli, vialone nano, arborio, or Baldo are the best options and they all absorb the liquid well, giving you that lovely creamy texture we are after.
Arborio is the most commonly sold risotto rice in shops.
If you want to buy Carnaroli rice, you might look at larger shops or buy it online from Amazon.
Baldo is available in most Middle Eastern or Turkish shops. It is the same type of rice I use for making my delicious Turkish Rice (Sehriyeli Pilav) recipe.
Vialone Nano is hardly available outside Italy.
Don't rinse the risotto rice before using it. Washing the rice removes the starch, which is what helps give risotto its velvety texture.
Pumpkin
There are many choices when it comes to choosing the right type of pumpkin for making Risotto Alla Zucca - Pumpkin Risotto.
Almost any type of pumpkin or squash would work for this classic Italian recipe apart from the giant jack-o-lantern pumpkins as they have grainy/stringy pulp and watery flesh.
The most pleasant pumpkins to eat are; Butternut Squash (or Butternut Pumpkin), Acorn Squash, Pie Pumpkin, Kabocha, or Fairytale Pumpkin.
Parmesan
Use a good quality block of parmesan and grate it just before using it. This is a must. Don't even think about using pre-grated cheese. You have to use the real thing for the best flavor and texture in risotto. Alternatively, you can substitute it with Pecorino Romano.
Other ingredients you need for Pumpkin Risotto are:
- Homemade Vegetable Stock - I prefer using vegetable stock for risotto dishes. However, Chicken Stock works great as well. You can also use store-bought stock or stock cubes if you don't have any stock in hand. Make sure you don't add too much salt as ready-made stocks and stock cubes contain salt already.
- Mascarpone cheese - I add this creamy cheese to all my risotto dishes for a velvety and rich texture. You can substitute it with creme fraiche.
- White wine - It intensifies and enhances the flavor of the risotto. You can use vermouth for a sweeter flavor or omit it for a child-friendly version.
- Butter - A good quality butter gives a creamy texture and rich flavor when added just before the cooking process ends.
- Shallots - They have a finer and sweeter flavor than onions but you can use onions if you don't have them in hand.
Step-by-Step Instructions
It is very easy to make this scrumptious Butternut Squash Risotto and to achieve the best results, you need to follow a few simple steps:
Prepare The Pumpkin Purée
This simple step is necessary for intensifying the pumpkin flavor and adding extra creaminess to the risotto. I use this method for my other risotto recipes such as Gourmet Mushroom Risotto and Cauliflower Risotto.
Peel and cut your pumpkin (or butternut squash) in half and scoop out the seeds. Roughly dice 300 grams of the pumpkin and place them in a pan along with the double cream and stock.
Cook them for 15 minutes, or until they are nicely softened on medium-low heat. Remove from the heat, blitz it into a smooth purée, and set it aside.
Roast The Pumpkin
Start roasting the diced pumpkin while the purée is cooking. Roasting your butternut squash will give your risotto a sweet and buttery taste.
Preheat the oven to 200° C (390° F). Cut 400 grams of pumpkin flesh into small cubes, size of 1 ½ cm (½").
Place them on a silicon paper-lined baking sheet, drizzle with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and sprinkle on cumin, nutmeg, salt, and flaked chili. Give the pumpkin pieces a good stir and place the baking sheet in the oven.
Roast them for 15 minutes or until they are lightly caramelized on the sides. Set them aside and proceed to make your risotto.
Make The Pumpkin Risotto
Pour the vegetable stock into a pot and bring it to a boil, lower the heat and let it gently simmer.
Place a pan on medium-low heat and add olive oil. Add the shallots along with the garlic and gently sauté them until soft and translucent, without browning.
Stir in the rice and cook for a few minutes until they are semi-translucent. Make sure the grains are heated thoroughly before adding the wine. This stage is called tostatura; roasting the rice with the shallot before adding any liquid to it.
Add the white wine when the rice is hot enough and cook until all the alcohol evaporates. This stage is called sfumare when you add the alcohol to the hot pan and it bubbles away.
Turn the heat to low and start adding the simmering stock a ladle each time. Keep stirring the rice every 30-40 seconds until the stock is totally absorbed by the rice.
Add more stock when there is no more liquid in the pan and repeat the same process until the rice is nearly cooked but still crunchy.
Stir in the pumpkin purée, mascarpone cheese, salt, and pepper at this point, and cook the risotto for a few more minutes.
Check the rice and add more stock if necessary until it's cooked al dente. Add the butter and give it a vigorous stir. This stage is called mantecatura; the continuous stirring of butter into the risotto to develop creaminess.
Stir in the roasted butternut squash.
Turn the heat off and add the grated Parmesan cheese on top. Do not stir the Parmesan cheese in, and let the risotto rest for 5 minutes with a lid on.
Serve the risotto straight away, and garnish with chopped parsley or chives.
Scroll down to the recipe card for the full, printable recipe!
Top Tips From The Chef
As a professional chef, risotto has always been one of my signature dishes. I know achieving the perfect flavors and consistency in a risotto can be tricky, especially when the internet is filled with so many incorrect recipes.
But once you follow the basic tips and technics I've learned over the years as a chef, you will be able to create your own signature risotto dishes with your favorite ingredients.
Use the right type of rice
The most important ingredient for risotto is the rice and to get the perfect results each time, choose the right type of rice. Carnaroli, vialone nano, arborio, or baldo are the best choices for making creamy risotto dishes.
Don't rinse the risotto rice before using it. Washing the rice removes the starch, which is what helps give risotto its velvety texture.
Make sure the broth/stock is warm
Adding cold liquid to the risotto when it's cooking will slow down the cooking process, and may end up shocking the rice so it won't absorb as much liquid.
Keep your stock/broth simmering on low heat. Add a ladle at a time, cooking and stirring over medium heat until the rice is al dente.
This helps the rice to fully absorb the liquid and flavors. Do not add the stock all at once.
Keep your attention fully on your risotto
Don’t let your risotto simmer unattended. Stirring is a crucial part of cooking risotto. It helps the rice to release its starch and gives the risotto a creamy texture.
Check and stir often, ideally every 30 seconds to achieve the velvety texture we are after. Stirring also helps to prevent it from drying out or sticking to the bottom of the pan.
Adding the butter and Parmesan cheese
Always add the butter just before the cooking process end. Make sure the butter is cold, and fresh out of the fridge. Add the butter and stir until combined.
Add the Parmesan cheese when the cooking process is finished. Turn the heat off, sprinkle the cheese, do not get tempted to stir it, cover it with a lid, and leave for 5 minutes before serving.
Serving Suggestions
You can serve this creamy and delicious Pumpkin Risotto or Risotto Alla Zucca as a starter/appetizer, a side dish, or a vegetarian main dish.
If you want to serve it as a main dish, I would suggest you serve it with a nice bowl of salad such as Turkish Shepherd Salad (Coban Salatasi) or Rocket Salad With Parmesan.
Pumpkin Risotto is also a perfect side dish to many meat, chicken, or fish dishes such as BBQ Garlic Butter Prawns, Baked Cod With Panko, Grilled Lamb Kofta - Izgara Kofte, and Dutch Oven Roast Chicken.
Recipe FAQs
Risotto should be cooked "al dente" which means "fully cooked yet retain a little bit of a bite. The risotto should be creamy, but not mushy!
When your rice reaches that stage, stop adding any more liquid. It generally takes between 18 to 20 minutes to cook a risotto.
Risotto is definitely best enjoyed freshly made. However, you can store the leftovers in an airtight container and keep them refrigerated for up to five days.
The leftover risotto is also great for making arancini - risotto balls! They are perfect as finger food or an appetizer and they freeze beautifully.
You can reheat the risotto in a pan on low heat with a splash of stock or water to keep its creamy texture.
Alternatively, you can microwave it for a couple of minutes with a few tablespoons of stock or water added. Stop the microwave halfway through and stir the rice.
A good quality wine adds some richness to risotto dishes. However, you can omit the wine if you don't want to use alcohol and add extra stock/broth instead.
Related Recipes
For more delicious autumn/fall recipes why not try:
Did you make this recipe? Please let me know how it turned out! Leave a comment below and tag @cookingorgeous on Instagram and hashtag it #cookingorgeous.
I hope you enjoy the process of making this creamy, comforting and scrumptious Pumpkin Risotto as much as you enjoy eating it! 🙂
Bon appétit! / Afiyet Olsun!
Pumpkin Risotto (Risotto Alla Zucca)
Equipment
Ingredients
For the Pumpkin Purée
- 300 g pumpkin or butternut squash (peeled and cut in chunks)
- 100 ml double cream or heavy cream
- 100 ml vegetable stock
For the Roasted Pumpkin
- 400 g pumpkin or butternut squash (cut in small cubes)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon cumin powder
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon chili flakes
- ¾ teaspoon salt
For the Pumpkin Risotto
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small banana shallot (finely chopped)
- 1 clove garlic (finely chopped)
- 320 g risotto rice (carnaroli, vialone nano, arborio or baldo)
- 115 ml dry white wine or vermouth
- 1 l vegetable stock
- 1 tablespoon mascarpone cheese
- 50 g butter (cut in small cubes)
- 60 g parmesan cheese (grated)
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon salt
- chopped parsley, chervil, or chives (for garnish)
Instructions
Preparing The Pumpkin Purée
- Peel and cut your pumpkin (or butternut squash) in half and scoop out the seeds.
- Roughly dice 300 grams of the pumpkin and place them in a pan along with the double cream and stock.
- Cook them for 15 minutes, or until they are nicely softened on medium-low heat.
- Remove from the heat and blitz it into a smooth purée, set it aside.
Roasting The Pumpkin
- Start roasting the pumpkin while the purée is cooking. Roasting your butternut squash will give your risotto a sweet and buttery taste.
- Preheat the oven to 200° C (390° F).
- Cut 400 grams of pumpkin flesh into small cubes, size of 1 ½ cm (½").
- Place them on a silicon paper-lined baking sheet, drizzle with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and sprinkle on cumin, nutmeg, salt, and flaked chili.
- Give the pumpkin pieces a good stir and place the baking sheet in the oven.
- Roast them for 15 minutes or until they are lightly caramelized on the sides.
- Set them aside and proceed to make your risotto.
Making the Pumpkin Risotto
- Pour the vegetable stock into a pot and bring it to a boil, lower the heat and let it gently simmer.
- Place a pan on medium-low heat and add olive oil.
- Add the shallots along with the garlic and gently sauté them until soft and translucent, without browning.
- Stir in the rice and cook for a few minutes until they are semi-translucent. Make sure the grains are heated thoroughly before adding the wine. This stage is called tostatura; roasting the rice with the shallot before adding any liquid to it.
- Add the white wine when the rice is hot enough and cook until all the alcohol evaporates. This stage is called sfumare when you add the alcohol to the hot pan and it bubbles away.
- Turn the heat to low and start adding the simmering chicken stock a ladle each time.
- Keep stirring the rice every 30-40 seconds until the stock is totally absorbed by the rice.
- Add more stock when there is no more liquid in the pan and repeat the same process until the rice is nearly cooked but still crunchy.
- Stir in the pumpkin purée, mascarpone cheese, salt, and pepper at this point and cook a few more minutes.
- Check the rice and add more stock if necessary until it's cooked al dente. Stir in the roasted butternut squash.
- Add the butter and give it a vigorous stir. This stage is called mantecatura; the continuous stirring of butter into the risotto to develop creaminess.
- Turn the heat off and add the grated Parmesan cheese on top. Do not stir the Parmesan cheese in, and let the risotto rest for 5 minutes with a lid on.
- Serve the risotto and garnish with chopped parsley or chives.
Notes
- Carnaroli, vialone nano, arborio, or Baldo are the best options and they all absorb the liquid well, giving you that lovely creamy texture we are after.
- Don't rinse the risotto rice before using it. Washing the rice removes the starch, which is what helps give risotto its velvety texture.
- Keep your stock/broth simmering on low heat. Add a ladle at a time, cooking and stirring over medium heat until the rice is al dente.
- Check and stir your risotto often, ideally every 30 seconds to achieve the velvety texture we are after.
- Always add the cold butter just before the cooking process end.
- Add the Parmesan cheese after removing the risotto from the heat.
- Roasting your butternut squash will give your risotto a sweet and buttery taste.
Nutrition
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Fiona
This recipe is fantastic! I didn’t change a thing and they turned out great! Definitely a keeper.