Butternut squash risotto recipe with pears and sage. Instructions for both Instant Pot and stovetop are included.
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I was lucky enough to travel in the Czech Republic and Slovakia earlier this month with a small group of 14 wonderful people. We started and ended in Prague, my new favorite city in the whole world, escaped the crowds to travel west to Karlovy Vary (a spa town very near Germany with hot springs everywhere), and retraced our steps eastward toย travel through parts of Slovakia very near Poland. It was a fantastic trip, my favorite in a long time, but people, we were in the land of meat. I held out for awhile and although my food was good, it wasn't representative of the area. And my selections were limited. In the end, I threw my hands up and ate fish when I could, and yes, meat when I couldn't. When in Rome and all that....and, honestly I needed the protein.
No, that doesn't mean I'm bringing you a meat dish here. I'm way too happy to get back to my whole grains, fruits and vegetables, thank you very much. But some of the weather we had in Prague and Slovakia was cold and drizzly, and one day we got snow - fittingly, on the morning that we traveled to see the castle where the first Dracula movie was filmed. Talk about setting the mood! Very exciting stuff for those of us who live in sunny, warm, drought-land here in California. Unfortunately,ย I didn't packย a heavy coat, and relied on layering up to beat the cold. And on food. I had a lot of soup there (the Slavs really know how to soup) and tucked into a creamyย risotto a few times, and found it to be theย perfect dinnerย to warm up my cold body, while a coldย drizzleย fell outside.
Make it in the Instant Pot
The first recipe card is for making this risotto on the stove top. The second recipe card is for making this risotto in the Instant Pot.
Butternut Squash Risotto with Pears and Sage (Stove Top)
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil divided
- 1 cup red onion sliced into thin strips
- 3 cups vegetable broth
- 1 cup Arborio risotto rice
- ยผ cup dry white wine
- ยฝ teaspoon kosher salt
- 3 cups diced butternut squash, ยพ" cubes
- ยฝ cup Parmesan cheese freshly grated
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ยผ cup coarsely chopped fresh sage leaves
- 1 barely ripe pear peeled and seeded, thinly sliced
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400หF, and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. This will be for roasting the squash.
- Warm 1 tablespoon olive oil in a heavy bottomed pot large enough for the entire risotto dish, and add the onions. Sautรฉ on medium high until the onions soften, about 15 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low for another 15 minutes. Don't move the onions around very much in the pan so they have a chance to caramelize.
- Heat the vegetable broth in a separate pot on the stove. Maintain at a very low simmer, barely bubbling.
- Add the Arborio rice to the pot with the onions, and sautรฉ for 10 minutes, or until some of the rice kernels are lightly toasted. Nudge them around the pan only sparingly. Add the wine and salt, and simmer for 10 minutes - until the wine has been absorbed.
- Toss the diced butternut squash in the remaining oil and roast for 15 minutes, until tender.
- While the squash roasts, stir 1 cup of warm broth into the risotto, stirring occasionally until it's absorbed. Continue adding broth, ยฝ cup at a time, to the risotto, always waiting until it's completely absorbed before adding the next ยฝ cup. Once the risotto has absorbed 2 cups of broth, the need to stir the risotto increases. This is the secret to getting a creamy risotto. By the final ยฝ cup, stir almost constantly. When the rice is al dente, stir in the Parmesan cheese. Turn the heat to low.
- Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the sage leaves and sautรฉ until lightly crisped, about 10 minutes. Gently add the sliced pears to the warm butter, and cook for 3 - 5 minutes, or completely warmed.
- Fold the roasted butternut squash, pears and sage into the risotto.
- Serve warm, immediately.
Nutrition
Instant Pot Butternut Squash Risotto with Pears and Sage
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- 3 cups diced butternut squash
- 1 cup thinly sliced red onion, about ยฝ red onion
- 1 cup Arborio risotto rice
- ยฝ teaspoon kosher salt, (ยผ teaspoon table salt)
- ยผ cup finely chopped fresh sage, divided
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- ยผ cup dry white wine
- ยฝ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 pear, peeled sided, and thinly sliced
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400หF and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. This is for roasting the butternut squash.
- Toss the diced butternut squash in 1 tablespoon olive oil. Lightly salt and pepper, and roast in a 400หF oven for 15 minutes, or until tender. Alternatively, roast it in an air fryer at 375หF for 10 minutes.
- While the squash is roasting, select the SAUTE function on a 6-QT electric pressure cooker, using medium heat. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil to the inner pot of the pressure cooker, and stir in the onion. Sautรฉ for 3 minutes.
- Add the rice to the pot, along with the salt and 2 tablespoons of the sage, and stir with a wooden spoon to coat. Sautรฉ for 3 - 5 minutes to lightly toast the rice.
- Add the wine, and stir for 2 - 3 minutes, until the wine is absorbed into the rice.
- Add the vegetable broth and bring to a simmer.
- Turn the SAUTE function off, and lock the lid in place. Select MANUAL and cook on HIGH PRESSURE for 6 minutes. Allow for a natural release of 5 minutes. Then immediately perform a quick release, and remove the lid.
- The risotto will have a layer of liquid on top. Stir in the roasted butternut squash, cheese, butter, remaining sage, and the pear slices.
- Serve immediately.
Maureen | Orgasmic Chef
I love Prague too! I could visit 10 more times and still find nifty places to see.
Your risotto with pears sounds fantastic and it's what I want for dinner. Thankfully I have all the ingredients in the house!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
I completely agree, Maureen! We actually started to make a list of the things we want to see and do the next time we go. It's the most beautiful city I've been to yet. Nothing really prepares you for the architecture. I hope you like the dish!!
Sam @ PancakeWarriors
Your trip soundsa amazing, and how cool was it to go see castles!! I'm don't eat much meat either, and this is something I've always been a little worried about travelling to a meat and potato oriented culture! Sounds like you made it through ok - if your warm dishes were anything like this risotto - yum!!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks Sam! It was particularly challenging because I was on a group tour and many of the dinners choices were narrowed to 2 or 3, all meat. The kitchen would then throw a risotto together for me. When we ate out on our own, I was able to eat fish, but there weren't a ton of veggies. The food was very good, buy very meat centric and LOTS of potatoes.
Tara
I always love coming over here to see your wonderful recipes and this is another home run, nicely done!
Wendy @ Wholistic Woman
LOVE risotto, and the flavors of butternut squash and sage sound great!
Suzanne
Really a fabulous risotto, I think it sounds delicious, I just got some arborio rice, have risotto on the mind This sounds like the perfect recipe. Thanks for posting.
cheri
I love risotto Susan, I bet this is delicious with pears and butternut squash.
Wendy, A Day in the Life on the Farm
Oh my goodness, what wonderful flavors in this risotto!!
Renee@Renee's Kitchen Adventures
What a fantastic looking comfort food recipe! Love the fall flavors!
Serena | Serena Bakes Simply From Scratch
What a wonderful sounding trip! I would love to go someday! I love the flavors in your Risotto, it looks wonderful!
Liz
Now THIS is one delicious way to warm up!!! What a gorgeous, tasty risotto!!!
Sarah Ozimek
I would have never thought to add pears to a risotto. This sounds delicious and perfect for fall!
Bernie ~ A Gouda Life
I LOVE risotto -- what a unique spin with the pears and squash -- sounds delicious!
Tara
Yum! This looks perfect for fall. I love your photos. So jealous. Prague is on my bucket list.
mjskitchen
Love everything about this dish! Sage just screams autumn to me and I love using it with winter squash. Great dish Susan!
Ann
Made this for dinner last night, and it was excellent. I had some leftover butternut squash that I wanted to use, and luckily the sage is about the only thing in the herb garden that hasn't been killed off by frost. Hubby agreed that we should make this again.
The Wimpy Vegetarian
I'm so glad you and your husband enjoyed it so much. And I really appreciate you letting me know ๐