Butternut Squash Risotto with Crème Fraîche and Fried Sage Leaves for a #SundaySupper Where We Use Veggies As A Main

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For those of you in the United States, I hope you had a wonderful holiday this past Thursday. As I stated in my preview, I find this week's #SundaySupper theme of Veggies As A Main refreshing because it could have easily contributed to the noise of Thanksgiving leftover ideas.

I last made a point of addressing the topic of vegetarian dishes earlier this year when I had the opportunity to work with Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg to promote their most recent book, The Vegetarian Flavor Bible. In it, Ms. Page makes a strong case for those that have chosen to eat a plant-based diet be it environmental, medical or ethical reasons and I highly recommend it even for meat eaters because it is helpful in dish composition.

Inspiration Behind the Dish

As I looked over my previous posts, I have found many vegetarian dishes here. Many are salads but I would estimate more are Italian primi dishes, which is the case here. I actually find it difficult to incorporate meat into pasta dishes unless we're discussing fillings. Costs aside, flavor is considered first when choosing the ingredients to use in a dish, then whether or not the dish is in season before science (i.e. yeast to make bread, deglazing with fluid, etc.). Since butternut squash is in season, I decided to use it in a risotto dish. The Vegetarian Flavor Bible listed butternut squash as pairing well with risottos, sage and nutmeg which is how I composed this dish.

Dish Details

I adapted Ree's recipe to the fried sage leaves found on epicurious.

Ingredients

Vegetable oil for frying
1 bunch fresh sage leaves
Kosher salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into a 1/2-inch dice
Freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 cup Arborio rice
1/2 cup white wine
5 to 7 cups chicken stock, brought to a low simmer in a saucepan
1/4 cup crème fraîche
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons nutmeg

Method

1. Fry the sage. In a small saucepan or small skillet, add enough vegetable oil to achieve a depth of 1/2-inch and place over medium high heat. Once the oil is hot, fry the sage in batches, 3 to 4 leaves at a time for 5 seconds each, removing them with a slotted spoon to a paper towel lined plate, then season with kosher salt. Set aside to cool. This can be done a day ahead. Once cool, store the leaves in an airtight container.

2. Prepare the squash. Melt the butter over medium heat in a large skillet. Add in the squash cubes, then season with salt and pepper. Sweat the squash until lightly browned and tender but not falling apart. Remove the squash from the skillet to a bowl, set aside and reserve.

3. Apply the risotto method in the same skillet where the butternut squash was prepared by following the method in step two of a risotto I published previously.

4. Finish the dish. Once the rice is al dente, stir in the reserved butternut squash, crème fraîche, parmesan and nutmeg using more or less crème fraîche until the desired consistency has been achieved. Adjust the seasoning as needed with salt and pepper. Serve in warmed bowls garnished with the sage leaves.

Final Thoughts

With the holiday this week, I didn't get the opportunity to perfect the dish because the night I prepared it, I added too much crème fraîche. Mrs. Stuntman also thought the dish was too sweet so I'll need to play around with spices to balance out the flavors.

Meanwhile, please view these other dishes offered for this week's #SundaySupper:

• Baked Eggplant Parmesan by The Crumby Cupcake
• Butternut Squash Kale Lasagna by Grumpy’s Honeybunch
• Butternut Squash Portobello Tacos with Garlic Sage Cream Sauce by Daily Dish Recipes
• Butternut Squash Risotto with Crème Fraîche and Fried Sage Leaves by Crazy Foodie Stunts
• Easy Veggie Bake by Confessions of a Cooking Diva
• Eggplant Rollatini by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Eggplant Rollatini by That Skinny Chick Can Bake
• Flourless Oatmeal Nutella Pumpkin Muffins by Cupcakes & Kale Chips
• Grandma Pizza with Dried Tomatoes by Get the Good Stuff!
• Greek Stuffed Baked Zucchini by The Weekend Gourmet
• Harissa-Roasted Vegetables with Couscous by Caroline’s Cooking
• Moroccan-style Lentil Chickpea Stew by Food Lust People Love
• Mushroom and Goat Cheese Tart by A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
• Polenta with Aged Gouda, Chard & Wild Mushrooms by 30A Eats
• Portobello Stack by The Freshman Cook
• Pumpkin Cake Cheesecake by gotta get baked
• Roasted Butternut Squash and Brussels Sprouts with Pomegranate by Take A Bite Out of Boca
• Roasted Potato and Spinach Soup by Cindy’s Recipes and Writings
• Shiitake Mushrooms with a Balsamic Glaze Over Polenta by Fearless Dining
• Stuffed Butternut Squash by Life Tastes Good
• Vegan Sandwich with Fresh Veggies by Healing Tomato
• Vegetable Pizza by Feeding Big and more
• Vegetable Strudel by Palatable Pastime
• Vegetarian Chili by Wholistic Woman

Join the #SundaySupper conversation on twitter on Sunday! We tweet throughout the day and share recipes from all over the world. Our weekly chat starts at 7:00 pm ET. Follow the #SundaySupper hashtag and remember to include it in your tweets to join in the chat. To get more great Sunday Supper Recipes, visit our website or check out our Pinterest board.

Would you like to join the Sunday Supper Movement? It's easy. You can sign up by clicking here: Sunday Supper Movement.

Light Stunt: Penne alla Vodka

Penne alla Vodka

I would categorize Mrs. Stuntman and I as infrequent drinkers. We might have a glass of wine with dinner if we're having friends over for dinner or on a special occasion such as anniversaries or birthdays but that's about it. I might drink a beer twice per year, maybe? I don't have any medical or moral objections to it. I just don't crave it very often. I do buy a lot of wine but it's the cheap stuff I use for cooking.

It is for this reason that I was curious when found an open, half-empty bottle of vodka recently when I was cleaning the kitchen. I vaguely remember using it in a dish but I couldn't tell you when or from what dish. Not wanting to waste food, I went looking for dishes that highlighted the ingredient and zeroed in on a pasta favorite.

The Source

This dish was prepared by Chef Mario Batali on The Chew.

Ingredients

Kosher salt
1 pound dried penne
6 ounces bacon, cut into batons
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 6-ounce can tomato paste
1/4 cup vodka
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 pinch nutmeg
Freshly grated Parmesan and chopped Italian parsley (for garnish)

Method

1. Boil the pasta: Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the penne and continue to boil for two minutes less than the box instructs. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water, then drain and set aside if the sauce isn't finished yet.

2. Prepare the sauce: While the pasta boils, render the bacon in a large sauté pan over medium heat until slightly crisp, approximately 7 to 10 minutes.

Add in the garlic and tomato paste and cook until the tomato paste turns a darker color and the garlic is fragrant.

Add the vodka to deglaze and stir to blend the flavors. Then add the heavy cream and nutmeg and simmer for a minute or two. Add in the cooked penne and toss to coat, using the reserved pasta water to adjust the sauce and season with salt, if necessary. Serve in warmed bowls garnished with grated Parm and parsley.

Pumpkin Gnocchi with Balsamic Brown Butter

Pumpkin Gnocchi with Balsamic Brown Butter

Before I discuss this recipe, I must begin by thanking you for your patience with my extended absence while I moved. Two Saturday afternoons of some friends transfering my furniture and weekdays moving all the other items makes for one very streesed out Foodie Stuntman. Well, I'm back and pumpkin recipes are all over the food blogs as of late, so I thought I'd prepare one to break in my new kitchen.

I guess the inspiration for this dish derived from the pumpkin pie episode of Good Eats where Alton Brown sarcastically notes, No, we're not gonna open a can! In fact, readers of my old website might remember about a year ago, I profiled a pumpkin risotto that I served as a first course at a dinner party. What I failed to note at the time was that I did not properly roast the pumpkin before I pureéd it because I was so caught up with my first attempt at preparing fresh pasta from scratch, not to mention the Bolognese that needed to simmer for 3+ hours. I needed to return to a pumpkin pureé to demonstrate it but also correct previous errors.

This also presented a great opportunity to use an item I won in a giveaway a couple of months ago hosted by Donna and Chad of The Slow Roasted Italian with a sauce I came across in doing some research for another project.

The Challenge

Successfuly demonstrate how to properly pureé fresh pumpkin and use it in a savory dish, so the canned version can be avoided.

The Source

My food blogger friend, Willow of Will Cook For Friends, was happy to allow me to duplicate her fresh pumpkin pureé method in addition to her pumpkin gnocchi recipe which she adapted from Heidi of Foodie Crush. I also took some elements of Alton Brown's pureé method from the episode I referred to above.

I used some of the balsamic vinegar I won from Fresina's Italian Specialties in my adaptation of Giada's Balsamic Brown Butter sauce I found on foodnetwork.com.

Ingredients

1 2 to 3 pound sugar pumpkin
kosher salt
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour, plus more as needed
1 stick unsalted butter, divided
1 large egg yolk
freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1/3 cup chopped walnuts, toasted
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon fresh Italian parsley, chopped (for garnish)

Method

1. Make your pumpkin pureé: Preheat the oven to 400° Fahrenheit. Cut off the top of the pumpkin to remove the stem. Cut the pumpkin in half, then in quarters and scoop out the guts with an ice cream scoop. Save the seeds for another use. Place the pumpkin quarters on a parchment-lined baking sheet, skin side down and season with kosher salt to draw out moisture. Roast until fork tender, about 45 minutes. Remove from oven and let them cool for 1 hour. Peel the skin from the flesh and transfer the pumpkin to a food processor and process until smooth.

3. Make the gnocchi: In a medium saucepan, reduce the pureé over medium low heat to thicken. Stir in 1 tablespoon butter until melted and remove from heat and let it cool. Add the flour, egg yolk, and nutmeg. Then season with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Knead the dough until it's tacky, but not sticky adding in more flour 1 tablespoon at at time if needed. Divide the dough into 4 balls and roll each ball into the shape of a cylinder about a 1/2-inch to 3/4-inch thick. Cut each rope crosswise into pieces 1/2-inch to 3/4-inch long. If desired, roll each piece (gnocco) against the tines of a fork to create ridges. (It holds the sauce to the gnocchi.)

3. Prepare the sauce and finish the dish: Bring a large pot of well salted water to a boil. Boil the gnocchi until they float to the top and swell, about a minute or two after they float to the top. Transfer the gnocchi with a slotted spoon or a colander to a warm bowl. Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan cook the remaining 7 tablespoons butter over medium heat, stirring occasionally. After the foam subsides and the butter begins to turn a golden brown (about 3 minutes), turn off the heat. Let cool for about 1 minute. Stir in the balsamic vinegar and walnuts, then season with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add the gnocchi to the sauce and garnish with Parmesan and parsley. Serve immediately.

Successful?

These gnocchi are very similar to the russet potato version. With potato gnocchi, the most helpful demonstration I have found is one by Chef Anne Burrell which can be seen on YouTube here. I used some of her hints in this recipe. For example, before I made the gnocchi dough, I refrigerated the pureé to keep my flour additions to a minimum. In fact, Willow demonstrates a second method to pureé pumpkin but I decided against it because the excess moisture will absorb more flour.

Also, bear in mind that these gnocchi are perishable due to the addition of the egg yolk, so they need to be cooked or freezed immediately. I recommend freezing the gnocchi to keep the individual gnocchi separate. (Roll the gnocchi in flour and freeze them on a sheet pan for several hours then transfer them to a resealable bag once frozen.)

One of the factors I considered when I decided to pair my gnocchi with this sauce was my consultation with The Flavor Bible, which noted balsamic vinegar paired well with pumpkin. It was one of the most well-balanced dishes I've composed-sweet and savory, plus soft yet crunchy. Going in, I was a little skeptical that the Fresina's vinegar would be significantly different than the store-bought brands that cost one-quarter of the price but I am now convinced. The aged vinegar was still sour but it didn't have the sharp bite I expected from my experience with the supermarket brands. It was so good, I will prepare this dish again in the future. So, please use fresh pureé in your pumpkin recipes this fall.

Lastly, if you're not familiar with Willow, you should be. In addition to her website, she can be found on facebook and twitter. Heidi can also be found on twitter, facebook, pinterest, and g+.