AI-generated image, for illustration only.
Baked Pumpkin Risotto
with Parmesan, Baby Spinach & Almonds
Risotto without the twenty minutes of constant stirring — the oven does the slow work while the pumpkin roasts alongside it, and you finish it with parmesan, spinach and a scatter of toasted almonds.
Ingredients (for 2)
Pantry basics not counted above: olive oil for cooking, and salt & pepper to taste.
Method
-
Get the pumpkin roasting
Preheat the oven to 200°C fan-forced (220°C standard). Toss the pumpkin chunks on a lined tray with a drizzle of oil and a pinch of salt, and roast for 20–25 minutes. If your oven's big enough, this can share space with the risotto once that goes in — see the next steps.
-
Start the risotto on the stove
Finely chop the onion and garlic. Heat a drizzle of oil in a large frying pan over medium heat and cook the onion until soft, 3–4 minutes, then the garlic for a further minute. Stir in the rice until it's glossy and coated, then add the stock powder and water. Bring to the boil.
-
Finish it in the oven
Tip the risotto into a baking dish, cover tightly with foil, and bake until the rice is tender and most of the liquid's gone, 24–28 minutes — it can go in alongside the pumpkin once that's got about 25 minutes left.
-
Bring it together
Stir the parmesan, butter, spinach and roasted pumpkin through the hot risotto. If it's sitting a bit stiff, loosen it with a splash of water. Season to taste.
-
Serve
Divide between bowls and scatter the flaked almonds over the top.
🌱 Make it vegan: swap the parmesan for nutritional yeast or a vegan parmesan alternative, and use a plant-based butter — everything else in this one is already dairy-free.