Bacon, Gruyere and Butternut Squash Risotto

When we lived in DC we subscribed to this food delivery service called ScratchDC.  It was like a Blue Apron but the food was local, pre-chopped and you could order one meal at a time.  They'd leave it in a cooler outside your door.  And the food was DELISH.  They closed down business recently in pursuit of their Test Kitchen endeavor and we were so disappointed.  I kind of took it as a sign that moving to NC was the right decision for us given that Scratch was leaving us high and dry.  Kind of not kidding.

But, before they closed up shop, they created a cookbook of their top recipes (although, guys, if you are reading this - really?  You left out Banh Mi Tacos?!?!).  Anyway, this risotto dish was one of our faves (although I'll have to share our number one Scratch risotto recipe with you at a later date).   We always tweak things a little so here's our take on their recipe.  Also, this recipe serves two people (although if you weren't piggies like us you may be able to stretch it to three) so double if you invite friends to join you (and you'll want to - it's that good).

What You Need:
3-4 slices of bacon
1 cup arborio rice
1 cup gruyere cheese, shredded
1 small onion, diced
2 cups butternut squash (diced)*
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp fresh thyme
1 tsp butter
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 cup white wine
1 box vegetable stock (or get fancy and make yo own)

What You Do:
Cook bacon and remove from pan.  In the same pan (soak up that bacon grease!), add 2 Tbsp of olive oil, butternut squash, thyme and cinnamon and cook until browned and tender.  Meanwhile, heat up the vegetable stock in a separate pot so that when you add the liquid, it'll be warm.  Chop up your bacon.

Remove the squash mixture from pan and put into a bowl for later.  To the same pot, add butter and onion and cook until translucent.  Add the rice and toast it with the onion for about a minute.  Once toasted, add white wine and cook until absorbed.  Once the rice has absorbed the wine, add the stock, about 1/2 a cup at a time until the rice is cooked.  Add the cooked squash, bacon and cheese and season with salt and pepper.  Serve immediately.