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Pumpkin & Blue Cheese Risotto

A creamy autumn risotto balancing sweet roasted pumpkin with the tang and savoury depth of blue cheese. Finished with fresh thyme and a little lemon for lift.

Ingredients

  • 500 g pumpkin or butternut squash, peeled, de-seeded, cut in 1–1.5 cm dice
  • 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (divided)
  • 1 small onion (or 2 shallots), finely diced
  • 1 rib celery, finely diced (optional but adds aroma)
  • 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
  • 250 g arborio or carnaroli rice
  • 120 ml dry white wine (about 1/2 cup)
  • 1 litre hot vegetable stock (keep gently simmering)
  • 60 g crumbly blue cheese (e.g. Danish Blue, Stilton), roughly crumbled
  • 25 g finely grated Parmesan or vegetarian hard cheese (optional for extra umami)
  • 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves (or 1 tsp dried)
  • Zest of 1/2 lemon + 1–2 tsp juice (to taste)
  • 10 g unsalted butter or 1 tsp extra olive oil (for final sheen)
  • Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Optional garnish:

  • Extra thyme leaves
  • Toasted pumpkin seeds
  • Additional blue cheese crumbs

Instructions

  1. Roast Pumpkin: Heat oven to 200°C (180°C fan). Toss diced pumpkin with 1 tbsp olive oil, a pinch of salt and pepper. Roast on a lined tray 18–22 minutes until tender and lightly caramelised at edges. Keep warm.
  2. Base Aromatics: In a wide heavy saucepan, warm remaining 1 tbsp olive oil over medium heat. Add onion (and celery if using) with a pinch of salt; cook 5–7 minutes until translucent, not browned. Stir in garlic; cook 30–45 seconds until fragrant.
  3. Toast Rice: Add rice; stir 1–2 minutes until edges look slightly translucent and grains are well coated.
  4. Deglaze: Pour in white wine; simmer, stirring, until mostly absorbed (about 1–2 minutes).
  5. Gradual Stock Addition: Add hot stock a ladle at a time, stirring frequently and allowing each addition to be mostly absorbed before the next. Maintain a gentle simmer—not a boil. Continue 16–20 minutes until rice is creamy and al dente (core has slight resistance but no chalkiness). You may not need all the stock or may add a splash of hot water.
  6. Fold & Enrich: Gently fold in roasted pumpkin, thyme, blue cheese and Parmesan (if using). Stir off the heat until cheese softens into the rice. Add butter (or extra oil), lemon zest and a little lemon juice. Adjust salt and pepper (blue cheese is salty—taste first).
  7. Rest & Serve: Cover pan off heat 1 minute to relax starches. If too thick, loosen with a splash of hot stock. Serve immediately in warm bowls; garnish as desired.

Tips & Adjustments

  • Texture: Final risotto should flow slowly on a tilted plate—add a ladle of stock right at the end if it seizes.
  • Cheese Choice: Balance a milder blue (Danish, Gorgonzola dolce) with a sharper crumble for complexity.
  • Herb Variations: Swap thyme for sage (finely chopped) added with garlic.
  • Protein Additions: Fold in shredded roast chicken or crisp pancetta at the end (not vegetarian).

Make Ahead

  • Roast pumpkin up to 2 days ahead; keep covered and refrigerated.
  • Reheat leftover risotto gently with extra stock; quality best fresh.

Source

Adapted from a publicly available WeightWatchers UK recipe (pumpkin & blue cheese risotto) and prepared for me by Nadia Kuftinoff. All instructions and wording original here.