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This ultimate comfort acorn squash stuffed with mushroom and brown butter risotto is full of fresh fall flavors and is so perfectly creamy. The added fresh herbs brighten this creamy mushroom risotto while the brown butter brings in a complementary nutty flavor. You can serve this as a beautiful side dish, or even enjoy for lunch.
If you have never made risotto, take this as your sign to give it a try! It is one of those dishes that will impress guests, but really is not too hard to make! All you need is a handful of ingredients to make this fall forward risotto and a little time. The most important ingredient to make risotto is the Arborio rice. It is a medium grain rice that provides the creamy texture required for the perfect risotto dish. RiceSelect® Arborio Rice is naturally gluten-free and has no added preservatives or additives. Plus, the BPA-free jars are re-usable and recyclable.
Also, help me in supporting the RiceSelect Jars of Hope Initiative and its mission to help end hunger in California. When you purchase RiceSelect Jar at any California Ralphs, Food 4 Less and Walmart between October 14th-November 10th, RiceSelect will donate $1 to the California Association of Food Banks. You can learn more about the Jars of Hope Initiative by clicking HERE.*
Why we love this acorn squash stuffed mushroom and brown butter risotto stuffed
There is a lot to love about this fall risotto dish! Here are just a few reasons why we love this mushroom and brown butter risotto!
Creamy and flavorful: This risotto is perfectly creamy and packed with flavor from the white wine and fresh herbs. The acorn squash brings in another depth of flavor that is so cozy! It is so dang delicious! My picky four-year-old even gave this recipe a thumbs up and gobbled it up!
Beautiful presentation: Risotto naturally is a beautiful dish! And I love how the roasted acorn squash elevates this mushroom risotto recipe. It has all the fall vibes and would be a beautiful addition to family meal, party or Thanksgiving.
Tips and tricks to making this mushroom risotto
- Use warm broth! Be sure to warm your vegetable broth prior to adding it to the Arborio rice. This helps prevent the broth from interrupting the cooking process! Just pop the broth in the microwave for 30-45 seconds to get it warmed up.
- Be patient! Making Arborio rice is known to be a more challenging dish to make. But it actually is not that complicated if you have patience and follow the instructions. You do need a little bit of time and patience while adding each 1 cup broth at a time to the Arborio rice as it cooks, but it really is fairly simple!
- Stir the Arborio rice…but not too much. After adding each 1 cup of broth to the Arborio rice, stir just enough to keep the Arborio rice from sticking to the pan and release some starch. But do not stir non-stop as this can cause the Arborio rice to release TOO much starch. If this happens, you might end up with a gooier Arborio rice compared to the creamy texture that is desired.
- Cook until al dente. Just like cooking pasta, aim for the Arborio rice to be al dente. This means that the Arborio rice will have a little bit of chewy bite and is not completely soft. To achieve this, test the Arborio rice after adding 3 1/2 cups of the broth. If the Arborio rice is mostly cooked but still slightly firm, it is done! If it is too hard, add 1/4 cup more broth until the Arborio rice has reached the ideal texture!
- Serve immediately! Once the Arborio rice has reached that perfect al dente status and the majority of broth has been absorbed, remove it from the heat and stir in the parmesan cheese. Adjust salt to personal taste and place into the roasted acorn squash to enjoy immediately. Although you can save risotto, it is best enjoyed right after cooking.
Ingredient substitutions and variations
Mushrooms: For this recipe, I use cremini or Bella mushrooms, which have a earthier flavor compared to the white button mushroom. But you can add any variety of mushroom you enjoy eating or even do a mix of fresh mushrooms.
Parmesan Cheese: You can swap out the parmesan cheese for pecorino romano cheese!
Fresh Herbs: I love the brightness that the fresh herbs bring to this mushroom and brown butter risotto. But you can switch them out for dried thyme and rosemary if needed. To do this, use 1 tsp of dried thyme, and just a pinch of dried rosemary.
Vegetable Broth: The vegetable broth can be swapped out for beef stock or chicken broth. I found when testing this recipe that vegetable broth complimented all the flavors in the dish the best. Chicken broth, surprisingly, was my least favorite, but still works. Just make sure that you do not use water in place of the broth. The risotto gets a lot of flavor from the stock during the cooking process.
If you give this acorn squash stuffed with mushroom and brown butter risotto a try, let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
And be sure to tag me on Instagram so I can see your creations!
From my kitchen to yours, happy cooking! I hope you love this recipe as much my family did!
*Minimum donation $25,000 and maximum donation $75,000. Purchase is not tax deductible. Sponsor: Riviana Foods Inc., PO Box 2636 Houston, Tx 77252. Charity: California Association of Food Banks, 1624 Franklin Street #722, Oakland, CA 24612.
Acorn Squash Stuffed Mushroom and Brown Butter Risotto
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 Tbsp. Fresh Thyme
- 1 tsp. Fresh rosemary finely chopped
- 3 cloves of garlic minced
- 1 Shallot finely chopped
- 3 Tbsp. Butter
- 1 C. RiceSelect® Arborio Rice
- 1/2 C. Dry White wine
- 8 oz Cremini mushrooms sliced
- 3 1/2-4 C. Vegetable broth warmed
- 1/2 C. Parmesan cheese plus a little to garnish
- 2 Acorn squash
- 2 tsp. Dried thyme
- 2 Tbsp. Avocado Oil
- 1/4 C. Toasted pine nuts
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Cut the acorn squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Place the acorn squash onto the baking sheet with the cut side up. Drizzle the avocado oil over the squash and season with a little salt, pepper and dried thyme. Flip the squash over so the cut side is facing down onto the baking sheet. and place cut side down on the cookie sheet. Roast for 40-45 minutes or until the squash is tender.
- Add butter to pan to a large sauce pan and turn on medium heat. brown the butter by letting it cook until brown bits start to appear, stirring occasionally. Once browned, add the sliced mushrooms and cook until soft, about 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in garlic, shallots, rosemary and thyme and cook 1-2 more minutes.
- Add RiceSelect Arborio rice to the pan and cook 3-4 minutes to toast the rice. Pour in wine and cook about 3 more minutes.
- Add 1 cup of warmed broth into the pan with the rice and cook until all liquid has been absorbed, stirring occasionally. Repeat until 3 1/2 cups of the broth has been added into the pan. Taste the Arborio rice to see if it done. It should be still a little firm when cooked. If it still too firm, add another 1/4 cup of warmed broth. Continue until the Arborio rice is al dente.
- Turn off heat and stir in the Parmesan cheese and salt to taste. Divide the Arborio rice in the roasted acorn squash. Top with toasted pine puts and a little more Parmesan cheese. Serve in acorn squash immediately and enjoy!
