Pumpkin Risotto

This is a special dish. Why? Because it's rice. If you knew me at all, you'd have known I'm a non-rice, non-noodle, non-pasta person. Just run through my cooking list and see if you find anything of that.

Allow me to digress. So I'm a virgin cooking rice, not to mention Italian rice. I remember years ago, I was invited to a friend's dinner at home. He cooked risotto. It was bad. Apart from the fact that he messed up the risotto, he got a real honest (nasty) review from my self-proclaimed-food-aficionado ex-boyfriend. I felt sorry for the cook, and the arborio rice. Anyway because of that I didn't think much of risotto since.

Why am I making risotto now? I don't know. Can be because I had a good one at Govinda's last week. Or maybe because the creaminess of risotto would go well with the Fig with Goat Cheese Appetizer. Perhaps just to make it an Italian night since I'm making Panna Cotta.

Let me digress, again. Unknowingly, I bought a saffron-infused arborio rice. Hence the color. It smells good. I kind of messed up a few things/ steps:

1. I added garlic because the recipe calls for garlic chives, which tastes more like garlic than chive, only milder. That should suffice?
   
2. Unfortunately, the maid threw away the chives that I'd been "growing" in a 1/2-full drinking glass. On last thought, I sprinkled some thyme leaves as a form of replacement. It worked.
3. I forgot to add apple cider (to replace dry white wine in the recipe) and only added it at the very last ladle of broth to the rice.

Below is my version of the original. If you are in doubt, go here for safety check. I won't hold you on that. I have to say though, I may not be risotto expert, but this recipe of MINE is good.

Ingredients:
(makes 2 servings)

3 - 4 cups miso broth
2 tablespoon + 1/2 tablespoon butter
1 cup pumpkin, cubed
1/2 onion, chopped
1 glove garlic, minced
1 cup arborio rice
1/2 cup apple cider juice
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
Fresh thymes

1. Heat broth in a medium saucepan and keep warm over medium heat.
2. Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a separate pan. Sautee onion, garlic and pumpkins until onion is translucent.
   
3. Add rice to onion- pumpkin. Stirring to coat for 1 - 2 minutes. Add apple cider. Cook, stirring constantly until cider has been absorbed by the rice or evaporated. Add a few ladles of broth, just enough to barely cover rice. Cook over medium heat until broth has been absorbed. Continue cooking and stirring rice, adding a little bit of broth at a time, cooking and stirring until it is absorbed, until the rice is tender, but still firm to the bite, about 15 to 20 minutes.
4. During the last minutes of cooking, add remaining tablespoon of butter, 3 tablespoons Parmesan, and chives. At this point the rice should have a creamy consistency. Add salt to taste.
5. Serve with remaining grated Parmesan and top with thyme leaves.