Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper 6 cups chicken stock
6 tablespoons unsalted butter 2 ounces pancetta, diced ½ cup minced shallots 1 ½ cups Arborio rice ½ cup dry white wine 1 teaspoon saffron threads 1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano Regianno cheese
For Butternut Squash Risotto:
Prepare basic risotto recipe
6 cups cubed butternut squash (I buy the peeled and cubed butternut squash from the grocery store to make this recipe go quicker)
2 tablespoons olive oil For Wild Mushroom Risotto:
Prepare basic risotto recipe
1 # mixed wild mushrooms ~ roughly chopped
Olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
For Shrimp Risotto:
Prepare basic risotto recipe
1# shrimp – peeled and deveined – roughly chopped
Olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Meanwhile, heat the chicken stock in a small covered saucepan. Leave it on low heat to simmer.



In a heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven, melt the butter and sauté the pancetta and shallots on medium-low heat for 10 minutes, until the shallots are translucent but not browned. Add the rice and stir to coat the grains with butter. Add the wine and cook for 2 minutes. Add 2 full ladles of stock to the rice plus the saffron. Stir, and simmer until the stock is absorbed, about 5 minutes. Continue to add the stock, 2 ladles at a time, stirring every few minutes. Each time, cook until the mixture seems a little dry and then continue to add more stock. Continue until the rice is cooked through, but still al dente, about 30 minutes total.



Remove the pot from the heat and cheese. Taste for seasoning. I usually add in freshly ground black pepper at the very end and rarely add salt, as the stock, pancetta and the cheese will flavor the dish well. Mix well and serve immediately.



For Butternut Squash Risotto:



Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Place the squash on a sheet pan and toss with the olive oil, with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Roast for about 20 - 25 minutes, tossing once, until very tender. Set aside.



Remove risotto from the pot from the heat and add the roasted squash. Taste for seasoning. Mix well and serve immediately.



For Wild Mushroom Risotto:



Sauté the mushrooms in olive oil and season to taste with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Remove risotto from heat and add the sautéed mushrooms and mix well. Taste for seasoning and serve immediately.



For Shrimp Risotto:



Sauté the shrimp in the olive oil just until the shrimp turns pink is cooked though. Remove risotto from heat and add the sautéed shrimp and mix well. Taste for seasoning and serve immediately.