Roast Goose Risotto with Squash, Thyme & Chestnuts

What to do on the third day of using up leftover roast goose (or turkey or chicken)? Make a risotto of course! Easy leftover using-up strategy.

The prep is key here, so start by roasting a peeled and cubed squash until soft along with a handful of chestnuts, and chopping up your goose meat into small peices. 

If you have leftover squash then use that, you could also use half of a vacuum pack of pre-prepared chestnuts if you like. Depends what you've got handy! Keep them hot in the switched-off oven if making the risotto right away, otherwise be prepared to reheat them before adding to the risotto.

As with so many recipes, kick off the risotto by finely dicing an onion, a couple of celery sticks and a fat clove of garlic or two. Warm up a splosh of oil and a big hunk of butter in a deep frying pan and gently saute them until soft.

At the same time, put a pint / 500ml stock in a saucepan on the heat to stay hot.

Add half a bag of risotto rice, about 250g, (to serve 4 people or 2 with leftovers) stir it in and let it sizzle for a few minutes before adding a wine glass of vermouth (or white wine). Stir until all the wine has been absorbed. Then, a ladle at a time, add the stock to the rice, stirring and stirring each time until it's all been absorbed into the rice. One thing I've found is that this goes much faster and works better if you keep the pan pretty hot, the stock should bubble a little when you add it to the pan.

Just as you finish the last ladleful of stock, add the squash, chestnuts, goose and lots of thyme leaves. Stir through to mix and then grate a load of parmesan into the dish, along with a few knobs of butter, some fresh chopped parsley, a squeeze of lemon juice, ground pepper and salt if needed.

Serve with a smile of satisfaction at thriftiness well executed.

 

Squash, Rosemary & Olive "Bread"

This recipe is a real gem from the Abel & Cole cookbook. It can be on the table in under an hour and has a wonderfully moist, dense, almost cakey texture. It's very filling and, at least in my mind, contains two of your five a day!

First of all grate a squash of any kind, honestly I'm not even sure what kind of squashes I used, I think any barring the squat pumpkins you get at hallowe'en would be fine (the carving pumpkins are watery and fibrous, not really good eating). 

I did enough to fill a teacup to overflowing, even with the gratings pressed down hard, which is probably about the same as the mugful suggested in the recipe.

Preheat the oven to 190 degrees C.

In a large mixing bowl add the squash to a cup and a half of self-raising flour, a large pinch of salt, about half a cup of grated parmesan, lots of black olives (halved), a generous tablespoon of dried rosemary and lots of ground black pepper.

Using the (now empty) teacup, whisk up 2 eggs and a tablespoon of milk with a fork, then tip this into the dry mixture above. Mix with your hands until you have a sticky ball of dough.

Line a small baking tray with greaseproof paper and wipe with oil, then drop the sticky dough ball on top. Grate over some extra parmesan and sprinkle with flour. Bung in the oven for 45 minutes.

Leave it to rest for 10 minutes before you eat it; we had it for dinner with prociutto and a tomato and basil salad.