Ingredients

• 1 pound butternut squash, peels and seeds removed, roughly chunked
• ¹/₄ cup olive oil
• 1 pound mixed wild mushrooms, especially oyster, shiitake, and chanterelles
• 1 pinch salt and pepper, plus more to taste
• 2 shallots
• 2 cloves garlic
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• Teaspoon dried thyme, plus more for garnish
• Teaspoon rosemary plus sprig to garnish
• 2 cups arborio rice
• ¹/₂ cup white wine
• 6 to 8 cups chicken stock, heated
• 2 tbsp mascarpone cheese
• 1 egg yolk
• ¹/₂ cup freshly grated Pecorino Romano, plus more to taste

Directions

1. In a sauce pants , boil butternut squash in salted water until fork-tender. Drain and set aside to cool slightly.
2. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a Dutch oven. Add half of the mushrooms and sauté on high heat until deeply brown in color and caramelized, about 5 to 7 minutes. Season generously with salt and pepper, remove to a plate, and repeat with remaining mushrooms. Set aside for later.
3. In a mini food processor, finely blitz shallots, and garlic. Melt butter in the Dutch oven (without wiping it clean from the mushrooms). Add shallot-garlic mixture and sauté over low heat until shallots are translucent, about 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in arborio rice, coating each grain in the shallot-y butter and toasting the rice slightly, about 1 minute.
4. Splash in the wine and deglaze the bottom of the pot, scraping up any flavor bits. Once all the liquid has evaporated, lower the heat to medium and add a ladleful of stock (about 1/2 cup), stirring constantly until absorbed by the rice. Repeat with the rest of the stock, one or two ladlefuls at a time, until the rice is cooked. This process from start to finish takes about 18 to 20 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in rosemary and thyme, cover, and set aside to finish cooking, about 5 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, purée the cooled butternut squash with a hand blender along with mascarpone cheese and the egg yolk. Fold squash mixture into risotto; it should melt into the rice and loosen it a bit. Stir in the cheese and cooked mushrooms. This is the stage at which you should taste for seasoning; add more salt and pepper if needed.
6. To serve, spoon the risotto onto each plate and top with some thyme and a sprig of rosemary. Finish with a dusting of Pecorino.