By In case you missed it a few weeks ago, I love squash. Squashy, squash, squash. (I’m really hoping you said that in your head with your best Ron Burgundy.) And so does my fiance — we love squash. Squashy, squash, squash. (Okay, that’s the last time — promise).
So, to fulfill what has been an unspoken challenge to try every new type of squash we encounter (cue the reason there’s a six-pound pink banana squash currently taking up a lot of countertop real estate), as well as those with which we’re familiar, squash has been a mainstay on our weekly meal planning. Luckily, we’ve had excellent luck with the recipes we’ve tried — except maybe that pumpkin pie made with peanut squash — and even modified one to make it our own (okay, it wasn’t too much modification — we just added bacon). We even inadvertently discovered a delicious vegan squash dish, which we made and enjoyed immensely last night.
Maple-roasted delicata squash with red onion
- YIELD: Serves 8 | ACTIVE TIME: 10 minutes | TOTAL TIME: 40 minutes
- Original recipe by Epicurious (less bacon modification).
Ingredients
- 3 medium Delicata squash (about 3 pounds), halved lengthwise, seeded, and cut into 1/4-inch thick slices
- 6 slices uncured bacon
- 2 medium red onions, halved lengthwise and cut into 1/2-inch rings
- 5 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
- 4 fresh thyme sprigs
- 1/2 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- Kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper
Preparation
-
- Arrange the racks in the upper and lower rungs in the oven and preheat the oven to 425°F degrees.
- Cook bacon on stovetop until about halfway done and then remove pan from heat.
- Place the squash, red onion, garlic, thyme, and red pepper flakes in a large bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and maple syrup, and sprinkle generously with salt and pepper; toss to coat.
- Once bacon has cooled a bit, move to a cutting board and chop into small pieces (or whatever size you desire).
- Combine bacon and vegetables in the bowl and stir to mix bacon in.
- Spread vegetables and bacon evenly onto two large, rimmed baking sheets.
- Bake on the upper and lower racks of the oven, tossing, rotating, and switching the pan positions halfway through cooking, until squash is tender and browned, 25 to 30 minutes.
- Taste and season again with more salt and pepper, if desired.
Butternut squash with cumin couscous
YIELD: Serves 6-8 |ACTIVE TIME: 20 minutes | TOTAL TIME: 50 minutes
Original recipe by Real Simple. We added the wine part.
Ingredients
- 1 butternut squash (we actually used a blue hubbard squash instead since we had it on-hand)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 cup canned diced tomatoes
- 1/3 cup dark or golden raisins
- 1 32-ounce container vegetable broth
- 1 15.5-ounce can chickpeas, drained
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 1/2 cups couscous
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
- 1/4 cup (1 ounce) almonds, chopped
- Halve and peel the squash.
- Remove the seeds and cut the squash into 1-inch chunks.
- Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat.
- Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes.
- Add the garlic, cayenne, cinnamon, nutmeg, and 1/2 teaspoon of the cumin and cook for 1 minute.
- Stir in the squash, tomatoes, raisins, broth, chickpeas, and 1 1/2 teaspoons of the salt.
- Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Uncover and cook until the squash is tender, 15 to 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, bring 1 1/2 cups water and the remaining cumin and salt to a boil.
- Stir in the couscous. Cover, remove from heat, and let stand for 5 to 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork.
- Divide the couscous among individual bowls and ladle the squash over the top. Sprinkle with the parsley and almonds.
- Enjoy with your favorite bottle of rose served in a fancy wine glass.
trajectoryoflife.com 
1 comments on “what I’m loving this week: squash, part two (and three)”