Butternut Squash Quinoa Risotto
Nov 15, 2016 in dinner, epicurious, recipes, taste, vegetarian. Read the original on: Simply Quinoa
This vegan butternut squash quinoa risotto is creamy, flavorful and perfect for fall. Whether you’re looking for a simple meatless meal or want something healthy to serve at Thanksgiving, this quinoa risotto is just the dish. Watch how to make it in this video!
I have been wanting to make this recipe for ages.
What was stopping me? Who knows. But now it’s here and I’m practically jumping out of my seat I’m so excited to share it.
Today we’re having a creamy, dreamy, autumn-inspired, “risottoâ€-style quinoa dish that is going to knock your socks off. It’s rich, with earthy tones from roasted butternut squash, it has a delicate, soft texture and couldn’t be easier to make.
Simplicity at its finest right here.
Traditionally, risotto is a not so healthy, dairy-filled, heart-attacking-waiting-to-happen dish that takes forever to make. Yes, it’s sinfully delicious, but the fact that you have to pay so close attention to it, and it could make you cause you some major pain, gives me more than enough reasons to steer clear. Or at least find an easier, healthier way to prepare it.
Which is exactly why quinoa is a great choice for risotto.
For starters, normally quinoa takes less than half the amount of time that it takes rice to cook. But when you’re doing it risotto style, you can cut the cook time down by at least three-quarters. So a dish that might take an hour to cook will take you 15 minutes with quinoa.
The second thing I like about quinoa risotto is that by itself it has a fairly boring (well, let’s say plain) flavor. You know, it tastes kind of like plain quinoa; not bad, just not exciting.
But when you add in just a few ingredients, in this case butternut squash and romano cheese, the quinoa transforms into this luxurious dish, full of deep flavors that awaken your palette and make your taste buds smile.
And who doesn’t want smiling taste buds?
The third, but not necessarily final, thing I like about quinoa risotto is that it’s really easy to make healthy. There’s no need for butter, cream or cheese, you can cook it using a simple blend of stock and/or water, add in your desired ingredients, let the mixture slowly thicken and you’re left with a perfect pot of “risottoâ€.
For today’s recipe, I decided to follow my heart and go the butternut squash route. I’m a sucker for anything squash in the fall, especially when it involves something creamy.
This butternut squash quinoa risotto is everything I hoped it would be. It packs a ton of autumn flavor in each bite, takes fewer than 10 ingredients, cooks in under 30 minutes and is actually so healthy that you could eat it for breakfast, lunch or dinner.
Which gives me an idea…top this recipe with an over easy egg and you’ve got yourself the perfect autumn breakfast – yum!
And now a question for you: what flavor of risotto would you make? Leave me a comment below and maybe I’ll make that my next recipe experiment 
Butternut Squash Quinoa Risotto
Prep time
10 mins
Cook time
20 mins
Total time
30 mins
Serves: 3 - 4 servings
Ingredients
- 3 cups butternut squash, cubed
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- Pinch of salt & pepper
- 1 cup quinoa
- 2½ cups vegetable broth
- ¼ cup nutritional yeast (or romano/parmesan cheese)
- Drizzle of honey (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Toss the butternut squash with coconut oil, cinnamon, paprika and season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a baking sheet and roast for 20 minutes. Stir the squash around a few times so it cooks evenly.
- While squash is cooking, add quinoa and vegetable broth to a sauce pan. Bring to a boil, cover and turn down to simmer for 10 - 15 minutes. The quinoa should be soft, but there should still be some liquid in the pot.
- Remove squash from the oven, transfer to a bowl and mash it with a fork until almost smooth. Add squash to the quinoa, stirring to combine.
- Sprinkle in nutritional yeast (or cheese) and cook for another 1 - 2 minutes.
- Serve immediately and garnish with additional nutritional yeast (or cheese) and a drizzle of honey.
3.5.3226
New to cooking quinoa? Grab your FREE Quinoa Starter Guide!
Become part of the Simply Quinoa community and receive weekly emails with exclusive content that I only share in email, as well as my in-depth guide to starting your quinoa journey.
Want more quinoa dinner recipes?
Follow my board on Pinterest!
The post Butternut Squash Quinoa Risotto appeared first on Simply Quinoa.
Read the original on: Simply Quinoa
Simply Quinoa, Alyssa Rimmer
I'm Alyssa, the writer and photographer behind the gluten-free website Simply Quinoa. My passion is creating wholesome, nutrient-rich recipes all with a little quinoa twist.
Latest Posts
