The Cultural Dish: Thanksgiving Sides: Pumpkin Risotto

It's finally that time of year where we all stuff our faces and enjoy spending time with our families (okay, sometimes family can be a bit much - but it's Thanksgiving)! To prepare for Thanksgiving, myself along with some fellow bloggers have prepared our favorite side dishes for the Food Network blog, FN Dish.

There are so many sides that I love to devour - green bean casserole (classic favorite), sweet potatoes, squash, potatoes, 1,000 crescent rolls, and then some. However, there is one dish that I started making a couple of years ago that has now become a staple side at our Thanksgiving table - Pumpkin Risotto!

Don't be afraid, risotto is not difficult to make, but it sounds fancy! So if you love risotto and if you love pumpkin, give this recipe a go and you will love pumpkin risotto!

Pumpkin Risotto

Ingredients (Yields about 4-6 servings):

-1 cup pureed pumpkin

-3 cups chicken stock

-3 tablespoons butter

-1 cup chopped onion (or leeks can be used)

-1 1/2 cups Arborio rice

-1 cup dry white wine

-1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

-Salt and pepper to taste

-Parsley for sprinkling

-Nutmeg for sprinkling

Directions:

In a saucepan, combine the pumpkin and chicken stock and bring to a simmer over low heat.

Meanwhile, in a separate saucepan, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter and stir in the onion. Season with a little salt and pepper. Saute the onions for a couple of minutes and then add the rice. Stir the rice until it is coated in the melted butter and onions. Add the wine and cook over medium heat until the wine is completely reduced. Once the wine has reduced, pour in a 1/2 cup of the chicken broth and pumpkin mixture and simmer until reduced. Repeat this step - adding a 1/2 cup of the pumpkin mixture at a time to the rice until is reduces - until all of the pumpkin and chicken broth mixture is gone. This whole process will take about 20 minutes.

Once all of the pumpkin and chicken broth mixture is gone, remove the risotto from the heat and stir in the remaining tablespoon of butter. Mix in the Parmesan cheese and serve with a sprinkle of parsley and nutmeg. Enjoy!