Risotto always feels pure FALL to me, and that’s particularly true of this roasted butternut squash risotto with fragrant fresh basil. These flavors and ingredients really straddle summer and fall, making it a great transitional recipe.
Risotto has been one of my signature dishes pretty much my whole adult life, and I love how endlessly adaptable it is.
You take a basic recipe and fairly simple ingredients, a few techniques, and then can add just about any ingredients to make it whatever you want (roasted vegetables are a fave of mine).
There are three types of rice you can use for risotto, but two main ones Americans can generally get their hands on. The most common is arborio, which many mass grocery stores have. The other is carnaroli, which you can order on Amazon easily as well. You can learn more about why each works here.
The process of making risotto has always been kind of therapeutic for me. I learned to make risotto while studying abroad in Italy, and loved sitting with my host mom, Giovanna, while she patiently heated stock and added it bit by bit to her risotto con funghi.
For many years risotto was my dinner party staple, because while it takes quite a long time to make *right*, it is a simple dish. It’s the perfect thing to sit and stir (or have a guest stir) with a glass of wine while chatting and getting the rest of the food ready. It takes patience but not much else.
The #1 rule of risotto is NOT TO RUSH IT.
So to get started with our butternut squash risotto, we’ll roast the butternut squash. Preheat the oven to 425 F. Line a baking sheet with foil and drizzle with olive oil. I have a whole post on how to peel, cut up, and roast butternut squash if it’s helpful as well.
Toss the butternut squash pieces in the olive oil until evenly coated, then spread them out so they’ll cook evenly. Sprinkle with salt and garlic powder.
Roast for 15-25 minutes depending on the thickness of the squash. When they are tender, golden, and crispy (I like mine even a little darker than below), remove from the oven and set aside.
Bring the stock to boil in a saucepan, then reduce heat and keep simmering gently over low heat while you are cooking the risotto.
Heat the oil with 2 tablespoons of butter in a deep pan over medium heat until the butter has melted.
Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds, then add the onion and a few pinches of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes, until soft and starting to turn golden. Do not let them brown though!
Reduce the heat, add the rice, and stir to coat them in the oil and butter. Cook, stirring constantly, for 2-3 minutes or until the grains are translucent. This is an important step, don’t skip it!
First, add the white wine and stir for about 30 seconds. It should smell AMAZING. Pour yourself a glass while you’re at it!
Then begin to gradually add the hot stock a ladleful at a time, stirring gently and constantly. Do not add the next ladleful until the previous one has been absorbed.
This will take time, just be patient and keep stirring gently. The whole process might take 30-ish minutes, but will depend on a number of factors.
Get ready with the remainder of your ingredients. Side note, I am forever in love with my Ikea cheese grater, which makes it SOOOO easy to finely grate cheese (and not my fingers…).
Once you’ve added the last liquid, increase the heat to medium so that the liquid bubbles. Cook for 15 more minutes, then add your butternut squash and a handful of Parmesan.
Cook for an additional 5 minutes, or until all the liquid is absorbed and the rice is creamy. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Remove the risotto from the heat and add the remaining butter and the fresh basil. Mix well, then stir in the rest of the parmesan until it melts.
Serve immediately, ideally on warm plates or shallow bowls (I like those giant salad plate/bowl things). You can garnish with some extra parmesan and basil.
This butternut squash risotto can be a vegetarian main dish all on its own, or you could serve it with a protein (or as a side dish). Leftovers are good though definitely never as good as it is fresh out of the pan.
Other fancy-seeming dinner party dishes you’ll love:
- The Best, Simple Burrata Caprese Salad
- Garlicky Farfalle with Marinated Feta & Arugula
- Carrot, Parsnip, & Goat Cheese Mash Shepherd’s Pie
- Julia Child’s Boeuf Bourguignon
- Rosemary Chicken Lasagna
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Risotto with Butternut Squash & Basil
This delicious basic risotto with roasted butternut squash and fresh basil is a perfect dish to transition from summer to fall. Risotto is a great recipe for a small dinner party, needing time but not difficult to make otherwise and perfect for chatting.
Ingredients
- About 2 cups of diced butternut squash (about 1 small one)
- Olive oil, salt and garlic powder for roasting the squash
- 5 cups of chicken or vegetable stock
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil
- 3 tablespoons of butter
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 1 clove of garlic, minced
- Big glug of white wine (around 1/4 to 1/2 cup)
- A generous 1 3/8 cups of risotto rice (see notes)
- 3/4 cup of freshly-grated Parmesan or Grana Padano cheese
- Salt and pepper
- Fresh basil, chiffonade (thinly shredded)
Instructions
- To roast the butternut squash, preheat the oven to 425 F. line a baking sheet with foil and drizzle with olive oil.
- Toss the butternut squash pieces in the olive oil until evenly coated, then spread them out so they'll cook evenly. Sprinkle with salt and garlic powder.
- Roast for 15-25 minutes depending on the thickness of the squash. When they are tender, golden, and crispy, remove from the oven and set aside.
- Bring the stock to boil in a saucepan, then reduce heat and keep simmering gently over low heat while you are cooking the risotto.
- Heat the oil with 2 tablespoons of butter in a deep pan over medium heat until the butter has melted.
- Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds, then add the onion and a few pinches of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes, until soft and starting to turn golden. Do not let them brown though!
- Reduce the heat, add the rice, and stir to coat them in the oil and butter. Cook, stirring constantly, for 2-3 minutes or until the grains are translucent. This is an important step, don't skip it!
- First, add the white wine and stir for about 30 seconds. It should smell AMAZING.
- Gradually add the hot stock a ladleful at a time, stirring gently and constantly. Do not add the next ladleful until the previous one has been absorbed. This will take time, just be patient and keep stirring gently. The whole process might take 30-ish minutes, but will depend on a number of factors.
- Once you've added the last liquid, increase the heat to medium so that the liquid bubbles. Cook for 15 more minutes, then add your butternut squash and a handful of Parmesan.
- Cook for an additional 5 minutes, or until all the liquid is absorbed and the rice is creamy. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Remove the risotto from the heat and add the remaining butter and the fresh basil. Mix well, then stir in the rest of the parmesan until it melts. Serve immediately.
Notes
- To make a basic risotto, leave out the roasted butternut squash and fresh basil, and add in other things as desired. It's great with roasted vegetables.
- Either arborio rice or carnaroli rice will work for this.
- Do not rinse the rice before adding it to the pan...the starch is really important to the final dish and you wouldn't want to rinse it off.
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