Dairy Free Risotto (v)

Fill a large saucepan with water (see ingredients for amount) and pop onto medium heat to slowly come to the boil. Stir in and dissolve the stock powder. Meanwhile, halve, peel and thinly slice the onion. Peel and grate the garlic (or use a garlic press). Roughly chop the hazelnuts.

Heat a splash of oil in another large saucepan on medium-high heat. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and pepper. Stir and cook until the onion is soft and caramelised, 5-6 mins. Stir in the Italian style herbs and garlic and cook for 1 minute more. Pour in the rice and stir together. Cook and stir for 1 minute so the rice is coated in the garlicky oil. Add the white wine vinegar and allow it to evaporate.

Add a ladleful of the stock and stir. Once the rice has absorbed the stock, add another ladleful and repeat. Continue adding ladlefuls of stock, stirring regularly until it has all been absorbed by the rice. This should take 20-25 mins. TIP: Let the rice absorb each ladleful of stock before adding the next.

When the squash is ready, remove from your oven and transfer to a bowl. Use a fork to mash it to a rough purée. Add to the risotto as soon as it is ready and keep cooking and stirring until all of the stock has been used. TIP: The risotto is done when the rice is ‘al dente’ - cooked through but with a bit of firmness left. Stir the baby spinach in a handful at a time until wilted then add the remaining sage.