Summer squash risotto

It might not even be fair to share this, because the recipe is a bit sketchy, seeing as I made it up as I went along. But if you are overrun with summer squash, you might be willing to give it a go. Look at it as a cooking adventure.

I love risotto because it will take pretty much anything you throw at it. Which in this case was a completely random assortment of squash.

Summer squash risotto (serves 4)

For the risotto:
A chunk of butter (a few tablespoons)
1 onion, diced
1 cup arborio rice
About 5 cups hot liquid (I used 2 cups chicken broth, because I had it, and 3 cups water)
2 cloves of garlic, pressed
Small handful of sage leaves, diced
Dash of salt and pepper
Handful of grated Parmesan or other cheese

For the squash:
A bit of butter or olive oil
Chopped squash, about 3 cups total (I used a zucchini, a yellow squash and some patty pan squash, unpeeled)

: Make a basic risotto - start by sauteeing the onion in the butter over medium heat, until it is soft. Toss in the rice and stir it about for a couple of minutes, to coat it. Pour in a bit of hot liquid (step back - it's going to steam like crazy!) and stir it in. Add the chopped sage, some salt and pepper and the minced garlic.

: Now comes the slow part. You have to stay in the kitchen so you can stir the risotto every few minutes. Once it absorbs the liquid you've added, add another cup. Continue doing this until the risotto is nice and soft but not mushy. It usually takes about 30 minutes for me and you're adding liquid every 5 - 10 minutes. You may not need the entire 5 cups of liquid. That's just what it happened to take for me this time. Trust yourself.

: Meanwhile, you can go ahead and chop up your squash. Toss it in a large saucepan over medium high heat with some butter, pop a lid on top and stir it occasionally. You'll be taking turns stirring the squash and the risotto.

: Once the risotto is cooked and the squash is tender, dump the squash and the Parmesan cheese in the pot with the risotto. Stir everything together. Serve immediately.

Every cookbook I've ever read claims that you cannot reheat risotto. I guess my palate is underdeveloped, but I love it as leftovers, hot or cold.