Girls Just {Need} to Have Fun: Risotto with Roasted Butternut Squash!

Girls really need to have fun. And I’m talking about Moms having fun, too!

So a few weeks ago I invited some of my Mom-friends and their daughters over for dinner.

Little did I know how much fun we’d really have. It was hard to say good-bye to such lovely ladies. And I really mean that.

Our time together was priceless.

One of the recipes I made was Risotto with Roasted Butternut Squash, since “butternut squash” seems to be the rage right now and everyone seems to be cooking with it. We’ve always grown butternut squash, and it keeps so well in the wintertime in a cool place, so seeing all the recipes in books, blogs, magazines, has been really exciting for me!

We love butternut!

Risotto with Roasted Butternut Squash
Serves 6-8

1 butternut squash, roasted and pureed
(See recipe, How to Roast Butternut Squash)
8 cups chicken stock (or more, depending on consistency that you prefer)
1/4 cup olive oil
3/4 cup chopped yellow onion
3 cups Arborio rice
1 cup dry white wine
2 T. unsalted butter
Salt and freshly ground pepper

After you roast the squash, puree and set aside.

In a saucepan over medium heat, bring the stock to a boil, and then turn to low and maintain a gentle simmer.

In a large heavy pan, heat the oil and add the onion until softened, about 4-5 minutes. Add the rice and stir until each grain is well coated with oil and translucent, about 3-4 minutes. Add the wine and stir until it’s completely absorbed.

Add the stock a ladleful at a time, stirring in between. Keep adding the stock as you stir, reserving 1/2 cup stock to add at the end.

After about 20 minutes, when the rice is tender to the bite, but slightly firm in the center and looks creamy, stir in the squash puree. Cook and stir together another minute or two.

Remove from the heat, stir in the butter and reserved 1/2 cup stock and the pureed butternut squash.

Season with salt and freshly ground pepper and serve at once.

I did not serve at once and it was a little dryer than I had hoped for. Next time I will add the reserved stock right before I serve, or I might even add a bit more stock!

But can tell we had a wonderful time?

The girls did too (legs dangling over the banister) …

… and different girls shared their talents.

Miz Abby played her violin, too, as she’s preparing to play at Carnegie Hall next year with her Siskiyou Violins group (bad mom = I didn’t get a picture of my own daughter!)

And then to top it off, we had this flourless chocolate cake.

When’s the last time you had a “chick” party where you really enjoyed yourself?

(Here’s a Black Bean Lasagna with Mango and Butternut Sauce recipe to try – easy, too!)