Place the butternut squash in a roasting tray, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle the thyme leaves over the top. Place in the oven for 30 minutes.
Add the butter to an oven proof casserole dish and over a medium heat fry the onion for 5 minutes until soft.
Add the rice and garlic and fry for 1 minute, keep stirring
Add the white wine and stir until it is all absorbed.
Stir in the hot stock and season with salt and black pepper
Cover with a tight fitting lid or several layers of tin foil and cook in the oven for around 20 minutes until the liquid is all absorbed and the rice is tender.
Remove the risotto and butternut squash from the oven and stir in the parmesan cheese and leave to stand for 5 minutes, which allows it to go all creamy.
Serve with a little extra parmesan and fresh thyme leaves sprinkled over the top.
Notes
Tips & Variations
The best rice to use for a risotto is Arborio rice or Carnaroli, which are both short grain starchy varieties with a slightly nutty flavour. The starchiness gives the risotto its creamy texture. If you don't have these, you could use other medium or short grain rice but avoid basmati or jasmine rice as it won't give the creaminess you need. Also, don't rinse the rice before cooking it as you will loose some of that starchiness.
I've used thyme in this recipe, but you could also use sage as that goes well with butternut squash.
The parmesan cheese in a risotto helps to bind everything together and gives it that creamy consistency. It's best if you can grate it yourself as pre-grated packs tend to lack flavour and can be quite dry. If you can't get parmesan cheese, a slightly cheaper version is Grano Padano. It has a similar nutty flavour but is a bit softer and creamier so works well in a risotto.
Storage
A risotto is always best eaten fresh, but you can store it in the fridge for 1 - 2 days. It can also be frozen for up to 3 months. The rice will continue to absorb the liquid so when you come to reheat it, add some more stock to loosen it. Do this is in a pan whilst stirring it, rather than a microwave. You won't get the same results re-heating risotto as when it was freshly cooked, but it's obviously better than letting it go to waste.