Butternut Squash Risotto

Yesterday I was in the mood for a good fall meal. I also wanted to convince John that butternut squash is indeed delicious. The solution: Ina Garten's butternut squash risotto.

My favorite part about this recipe is that it calls for saffron, which really classes up the dish. Saffron tends to be expensive, but I found it at a reasonable price at (where else?) Trader Joe's.  John's favorite part of the recipe is that it contains a pork product (pancetta).  Don't be afraid to make risotto... it does require constant attention, but it's not difficult to make. The end result is a creamy, delicious and filling meal which successfully convinced John that butternut squash is tasty. Really, what's not tasty when combined with this much butter and cheese?

For a vegetarian version of this dish, you could easily leave out the pancetta and use veggie stock instead of the chicken stock.

Benvenuto!

A few months ago, I moved in with my boyfriend, John.  I found our apartment on Craigslist... it seemed perfect not only because it is a mere mile from where I work, but also because it's right above a little pizza place. We're both food enthusiasts, and we knew right away that it was the perfect place for us. After combining all of our gadgets, we knew we were kind of unstoppable in the kitchen.

As far as my cooking style... I usually take inspiration from whatever I saw on Food Network that morning, something I enjoyed in a restaurant, or what looks good at the local farmer's market.  I'm hoping that keeping a blog will encourage me to branch out of my culinary comfort zone and try some new and creative dishes to share.

John, as you can see, has the Italian dishes covered:

Here's John making meatballs. Also featured is the amount of pasta he bought at the store that day (along with lots of pudding and cheese... you know, things you can make a full meal out of). While I'm not going to post his last name on here, it's pretty much the most Italian last name I've ever heard. One of my friends, when she couldn't remember it, started referring to him as "John DiFrappuccino." Trust me, it fits. John makes some mean Italian cuisine. I think I fell for him when he was explaining to me the secret for his delicious chicken parm: "a perfect bread-to-chicken ratio." Doesn't he make an adorable stereotype? 

Our cat, Bear, isn't really interested in eating what we cook so much as getting into and knocking over whatever we're drinking.  He does seem curious about the cooking process, though.

I hope you'll enjoy following us through our various cooking projects, and maybe even cooking some of our food. Buon appetito!