Oven-Baked Pumpkin Risotto
Questa ricetta è disponibile anche in italiano
This easy oven-baked pumpkin risotto takes all the labor out of making risotto – no more standing over the stove and laboring for hours! Instead, the rice cooks itself in the oven.
This fantastic recipe is a quick fix meal that requires minimum preparation time and the result is simply warming and lush.
Try it when you fancy something hearty, delicious and gluten free!
The preparation of this recipe reminds me a lot of a regional recipe I grew up with: Riso, Patate e Cozze (literally rice, potato & mussels), that I veganized a while back here.
How To Make Oven-Baked Pumpkin Risotto
STEP 1 – SET THE OVEN
To get started with this amazing risotto, we need to get the oven up to temperature. That’s the one thing that we don’t adore about al forno recipes – getting to the critical point of adding your food to the oven, and finding that you forgot to preheat it. Therefore: remember! For this recipe, go for 200ËšC, or 390ËšF.
STEP 2 – CARVE THE PUMPKIN
Now, wash the pumpkin, and then cut off the top part of the pumpkin with a sharp knife – don’t throw away the lid! Try to get a level cut, as that will make it easier later on in the recipe. We’d recommend using a flat-bladed knife (like a santoku) rather than a curved knife (like a chefs’ knife) as that will allow you to slice through the pumpkin rather than having to rock the blade back and forth.
Remove the seeds and filament strings from the inside of the pumpkin. We’d recommend using a metal spoon, and working your way down from the top in a sort of spiral: this is often the easiest way.
STEP 3 – COMBINE THE INGREDIENTS
Add the vegan cream cheese to a large jug, and then add the wine. When the two are combined, stir with a fork to make a loose mixture, try not to have any large clumps within it.
Add all the spices to the mixture, along with the salt and the stock cube. Then, pour the water into the jug straight from the kettle. The water needs to be hot to dissolve the stock cube! If you’re having trouble with it, try crumbling the cube up a little with a fork or a similar implement: that can work wonders.
STEP 4 – BAKE
Place the pumpkin onto an oven tray. If the bottom section of it isn’t straight, then place some layers of foil underneath to make it roughly level – this will help with the cooking of the risotto in a little while.
Add the rice to the pumpkin, followed by the enriched broth that you made earlier. Make sure to mix them very well, as all of the grains of rice need to be in contact with the liquid so that they can absorb it.
Cover the pumpkin with the lid from earlier, and bake the entire thing for twenty minutes. After that time has passed, remove the lid from the pumpkin – be careful! It will be very hot. Then, continue baking the pumpkin for around forty minutes, or until the rice is cooked.
STEP 5 – ENJOY
Finally, serve the risotto up, and top it with a little pumpkin scraped from the side – it should be beautifully soft and rich! Alternatively, you can add a little bit of olive oil or vegan grated cheese – the possibilities are endless!
Something that we love doing is serving this recipe to the table with its lid: it adds a little bit of showiness and allows people to help themselves to whatever they may like.
Why not….pairing it with this delicious Mushroom & Smoked Paprika Soup!
Oven Baked Pumpkin Risotto Recipe
Ingredients (serves 2):
1 Pumpkin (around 600g)
270 g Water
150 g Arborio Rice
50 g Vegan Cream Cheese
30 g White Wine
4 Thyme Sprigs
1 Vegan Stock Cube (Chicken)
1 tsp Salt
½ tsp Smoked Paprika
¼ tsp Garlic Powder (or 1 clove, grated)
¼ tsp Onion Powder
¼ tsp Nutmeg
Vegan Grated Cheese or Nutritional Yeast to serve
Method:
1. Preheat the oven at 200° C (390°F).
2. Wash the pumpkin then cut the top part off with a sharp knife. Do not throw away the lid.
3. Remove the seeds and filaments with a spoon until the inside is smooth and clean.
4. Add the vegan cream cheese to a large glass jug and loosen in up until smooth/watery with the wine.
5. Add all the spices, the salt and stock cube, then pour over the water straight from the kettle (water must be hot to better dissolve the stock cube).
6. Place the pumpkin onto a oven tray. If the bottom is not straight, place some layers of foil to level it up.
7. Fill the pumpkin with the rice, then pour over the enriched broth.
8. Cover with the lid and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the lid and continue baking for around 40 minutes, or until the rice is cooked.
9. Serve the risotto and top with some pumpkin pulp scraped off the sides. You can also top with a kiss of olive oil or vegan grated cheese. Alternatively, serve the pumpkin with its lid to the table, so that people can help themselves.
