Roasted Butternut Squash Risotto -- The Friday Night That Felt Like a Date

Five weeks old. I have left the apartment alone twice, both times for under an hour, both times with Sean on duty and my phone in my hand. I'm aware that this is not a sustainable relationship with independent movement and that it will resolve itself. It's just that he's very small and I'm still recalibrating what "fine" looks like when he's not visible.

Sean's father came on Sunday afternoon and I made Irish soda bread and we had tea and the visit had a formality to it that softened over the first hour as Sean Sr. held Liam and stopped being careful with him. There's a specific transition that happens with people who haven't been around babies recently—they hold them at first like they might break and then the body memory comes back and they settle. Sean Sr. settled around the forty-minute mark and started telling Liam about the Red Sox, about the 2004 series, with the same intensity he'd use for an adult audience. Liam looked at him with the patient attention of someone who doesn't have anywhere else to be.

I've been cooking my way through the freezer meals both mothers brought and each one is a small gift from the person I was eight weeks ago who had the foresight to make them. Past-me packed and labeled everything. Present-me is grateful. The chicken stock I made on the first week of maternity leave is the best thing in the freezer—deep gold, slightly gelatinous, the kind of stock that can save any dish. I used it to make risotto on Friday night after Liam was asleep and Sean and I ate at the table at nine PM and it felt like a date, almost. We're finding our way back to ourselves inside this new thing. It's slower than I expected and more interesting.

That Friday night risotto started with the stock — the deep gold, slightly gelatinous quart I’d labeled and frozen back when I still had two hands free and a full night’s sleep. I wanted something that would feel like an occasion without requiring much of me, something slow enough to be meditative but forgiving enough that I could stop and start. Stirring risotto at nine PM while the apartment was quiet turned out to be exactly the right thing. I used roasted butternut squash because I had one on the counter and because the color of it, golden and sweet, matched the stock and the mood.

Roasted Butternut Squash Risotto

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 45 min | Total Time: 1 hour | Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 1 small butternut squash (about 1 1/2 lbs), peeled and cut into 3/4-inch cubes
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• Salt and black pepper to taste
• 5 cups chicken stock (homemade or low-sodium), warmed
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1 medium yellow onion, finely diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 cups Arborio rice
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter (for finishing)
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
• Fresh sage leaves, optional, for garnish

Instructions

1. Roast the squash. Preheat oven to 400°F. Toss butternut squash cubes with 1 tablespoon olive oil, salt, and pepper. Spread in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet and roast 25–30 minutes, flipping once, until tender and caramelized at the edges. Set aside.
2. Warm the stock. Pour the chicken stock into a small saucepan over low heat. Keep it at a gentle simmer throughout — adding cold stock to risotto will slow the cooking and affect texture.
3. Build the base. In a wide, heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and 1 tablespoon butter over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and translucent, about 6 minutes. Add the garlic and thyme and cook 1 minute more.
4. Toast the rice. Add the Arborio rice to the pot and stir to coat in the fat. Toast for 2 minutes, stirring constantly, until the edges of the grains look slightly translucent.
5. Deglaze with wine. Pour in the white wine and stir until fully absorbed, about 2 minutes.
6. Add stock gradually. Add the warm stock one ladleful (about 1/2 cup) at a time, stirring frequently and waiting until each addition is nearly absorbed before adding the next. Continue until the rice is al dente and the mixture is creamy, about 20–22 minutes total. You may not need all the stock.
7. Fold in squash and finish. Gently fold in about two-thirds of the roasted squash. Stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons butter and the Parmesan. Taste and adjust salt and pepper.
8. Serve. Divide among bowls and top with the remaining roasted squash cubes, extra Parmesan, and fresh sage if using. Serve immediately.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 480 | Protein: 13g | Fat: 16g | Carbs: 68g | Fiber: 4g | Sodium: 520mg