Butternut Squash Risotto with Crispy Sage and Toasted Hazelnuts

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

A deeply savory, spoon-coating risotto built entirely on olive oil — half the squash melts into the rice for natural sweetness and body, the rest stays in tender cubes. Nutritional yeast and a splash of oat milk stand in for cheese and butter, while sage leaves fried crisp in the same pan and toasted hazelnuts give every bite crunch and perfume.

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup raw hazelnuts
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 16 leaves fresh sage leaves
• flaky sea salt, for sprinkling

• 1 1/2 lb butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 4 cups)
• 6 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
• 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 medium yellow onion, finely diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 cups arborio or carnaroli rice
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 3 tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1/4 cup unsweetened oat milk
• 2 tsp fresh lemon juice
• 1/8 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
• 1 1/4 tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

1. Toast the hazelnuts in a dry skillet over medium heat, shaking often, for 6 to 8 minutes until fragrant and the skins crack. Transfer to a clean kitchen towel, rub off the loose skins, then coarsely chop and set aside.
2. Wipe the skillet, add the 1/4 cup olive oil, and heat over medium until it shimmers (about 300°F). Add the sage leaves in a single layer and fry 20 to 40 seconds per side, until they stop sizzling loudly and turn a shade darker. Lift out with a fork onto a paper towel and sprinkle with flaky salt. Reserve the sage-infused oil in the skillet.
3. Pour the vegetable broth into a saucepan and bring to a bare simmer over low heat; keep it hot the whole time you cook. Ladling in cold broth stalls the risotto.
4. Return the skillet with the sage oil to medium-high heat. Add half the butternut squash cubes (about 2 cups) in a single layer, season with 1/4 teaspoon salt, and sear 6 to 8 minutes, turning once or twice, until browned and just tender. Scrape onto a plate and set aside for finishing.
5. In a wide heavy pot or Dutch oven, warm the 3 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook 6 to 7 minutes, stirring, until soft and translucent but not browned. Stir in the garlic and cook 45 seconds more.
6. Add the remaining raw squash cubes and the rice. Stir constantly for 2 to 3 minutes until the rice grains look chalky-white at the edges and translucent in the center and smell faintly toasted.
7. Pour in the white wine and stir until it has almost fully evaporated, about 2 minutes. Add the nutmeg, black pepper, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt.
8. Add 1 cup of hot broth and stir often at a steady, gentle simmer until the liquid is nearly absorbed. Continue adding broth 3/4 cup at a time, stirring and letting each addition absorb before the next, for 18 to 22 minutes total. The raw squash cubes will collapse into the rice and thicken it — help them along by mashing against the side of the pot.
9. Start tasting at the 18-minute mark. The rice should be creamy with a firm but not crunchy center. If you run out of broth before it gets there, use hot water. The finished risotto should slump slowly when you drag a spoon through it; loosen with an extra splash of broth if it looks stiff.
10. Off the heat, vigorously beat in the nutritional yeast, oat milk, and lemon juice for 30 seconds — this is what makes it glossy. Fold in the seared squash cubes, cover, and rest 2 minutes.
11. Taste and adjust salt and pepper. Spoon into shallow bowls, spread flat with the back of the spoon, and top with the chopped hazelnuts and crisp sage leaves. Serve immediately.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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