Bakbraken Acres CSA Newsletter

Vol. 17

 October 29, 2012

Happy Halloween, Dia de los Muertos, and Full Moon!!! The end of October marks the culmination of the summer harvest season as we begin hunker down for the holidays and stormy winter weather. With four more weeks of the CSA remaining, your shares will lend themselves nicely to stews, soups, and oven cooked meals. Winter squash is coming along with more apples, persimmons in a few weeks, and greens. Enjoy your pumpkin this week, they can be eaten raw, cooked, or used for carving!

Pumpkin and Sage Risotto

Serves 6 to 8

1 small pumpkin or about 1 lb.  Diced pumpkin or winter squash

20 sage leaves

Salt and pepper

7 to 8 cups Chicken stock

1 medium onion

5 ½ tbs butter

2 cups Arborio rice

½ cup dry white wine

½ cup Parmesan cheese, plus extra for garnish

Peel, clean, and dice pumpkin. Put diced pumpkin into heavy bottomed pot and cook with a few leaves of sage, salt, and 1 cup of chicken stock. Cook until tender, but not too soft, about 5 to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, chop 6 sage leaves fine and cut the onion into small chunks.

Heat the rest of the stock and hold at a low simmer. In and other heavy bottomed saucepan, heat 3 tbs of the butter, add sage, and cook for about a minute; add onion and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the rice and a pinch of salt and cook on low heat, stirring often for about 3 minutes. Turn up the heat and pour in the white wine. When the wine has been absorbed, add just enough hot stock to cover the rice, stir well, and reduce the heat.

Keep the rice at a gentile simmer and continue to add more stock, a ladle or two at a time, letting each addition be absorbed by the rice. While the rice is cooking, sauté the remaining sage leaves in butter until crisp. After 15 minutes, the rice will be nearly cooked. Stirring the cooked squash, the rest of the butter, and the cheese. Continue cooking for 3 to 5 more minutes. Adjust the seasoning. When done, serve in warm bowls and garish with extra cheese and sautéed sage leaves.