ROAST BUTTERNUT SQUASH & SAGE RISOTTO WITH PICKLED WALNUTS & PERL LAS

From Jim Dobson, head chef at the Fox and Hounds, Llancarfan

Ingredients

1 litre warm vegetable stock

25 ml olive oil

300g Arborio risotto rice

2 shallots –finely diced

1 clove garlic –finely chopped

75 ml white wine

1 butternut squash

50g butter

100g Perl Las, crumbled (or any blue cheese) Jar of pickled walnuts

Sage – finely chopped

Method

Firstly, make the butternut squash puree. Peel and dice the squash, heat a pan with a little oil and add the diced squash and season with salt. Try to get a nice light brown colour all over the squash, remove half from the pan on to a small metal tray and bake in the oven at 180C for 10 minutes and save for later. Cover the rest of the squash in the pan with water and simmer for a few mins until soft.

Carefully drain the squash into a blender keeping a small amount of the water. Blend with the butter and add some of the water if needed. Pass through a sieve and keep to one side.

In a heavy-bottom pan, add the olive oil then gently cook the shallots and garlic until soft, add the rice and season with salt, stir for a minute or so until the rice turns translucent then add the white wine and reduce until almost dry.

Begin to add the stock, a ladle at a time. Simmer gently and stir occasionally until the liquid is absorbed by the rice, ensuring it doesn’t stick to the base. Continue to add the stock until all gone and absorbed.

To finish, stir the squash puree, diced squash and chopped sage into the rice – the consistency should be thick but not stiff. Spoon into serving bowls and garnish with sliced pickled walnuts, blue cheese and deep fried sage leaves (optional).