Tag Archives: Roasted Squash

Hearty Kale Dinner Bowl

If you’ve been reading my blog for a while now, it’s no secret that I love breakfast for dinner. There is something about those typical morning foods that seem to soothe and calm me. Just think about it. By the end of the day, when we’re feeling tired and a little bit overwhelmed, we need some serenity. I think there is also some sort of illicit pleasure in breaking the rules. I’m an adult now, and I can eat breakfast for dinner if I want!

When I saw Tim Robinson’s recipe for “Hearty Kale breakfast Bowl” on thefeedfeed.com, I knew I wanted to have it for dinner. I adapted his recipe slightly, adding in some butternut squash and seasoning it with smoked paprika and garlic. It takes about 35 minutes to roast the potatoes and squash, but during that time, you can prepare the other bowl ingredients.

The bitterness of the kale is perfectly balanced by the fatty richness of creamy avocado and oozy egg yolk. The cubes of potato and squash turn into crispy little nuggets. Crumbled feta adds a hit of salt. Don’t skimp on the red pepper flakes! This dish hits all the right notes.

Tim suggests using leftover grains instead of the potatoes. Farro, barley or rice would be excellent substitutions.

If going rogue with breakfast for dinner resonates with you, check out these other awesome recipes.

Bagel Breakfast Sandwiches
Fried Eggs on Rösti Potatoes with Shakshuka Sauce
Breakfast Burrito

Butternut Squash and Israeli Cous Cous

Let’s ease into this new season together, gently. No to boots and sweaters just yet, but I will encourage you to turn on the oven and roast some butternut squash. If you’re intimidated by a whole butternut, I’ve got you covered. Here’s an old video I made showing you the safest way to get the job done.

I like to dice the squash quite small for this salad. Little cubes, about 1/4 inch in size is perfect. Be patient and methodical, it will be worth it. Tiny pieces cook more quickly, plus, when all that surface area makes contact with a screaming hot pan, the result is lots of little crispy bits. Toss diced squash with some olive oil, salt and pepper and a few sprigs of fresh thyme and roast at 400°F.

I love to pair the squash with Israeli couscous (also known as pearl couscous). Israeli couscous is technically not a grain, but rather a pasta. Made from wheat flour and semolina, it is toasted, rather than dried. The easiest way to cook it is in lots of boiling salted warter, just like any other pasta. Cook it until it’s al dente. Part of the charm of Israeli couscous is the chewy, bouncy texture.

The squash and couscous are quite bland, so they need an assertive dressing to make it come alive. My vinegar of choice is sherry vinegar (labelled vinaigre de Jerez). It’s more rounded and complex than red wine or apple cider vinegar and way less cloying than balsamic. It has a crisp, bright acidity with lots of nuttiness and some caramel undertones. Don’t buy anything labelled “cooking sherry”. That’s not the same thing. My favourite brand sells for about $12 a bottle and it’s commonly sold in higher end grocery stores. In Ottawa I buy it at Herb and Spice. If you can’t find it, red wine vinegar would work quite well in this salad.

My green of choice for this salad is arugula. It’s peppery bite is perfect with the bland couscous and the sweet squash. A sprinkling of deeply toasted hazelnuts adds a welcome crunch. Any leftovers keep well in the fridge for 1-2 days.

Autumn Butternut Squash and Ricotta Tartine

A funny thing happens when your adult children come home for a visit. In July, my daughter moved into the cottage with me for most of the summer. I was thrilled about it, as we live in different cities, and I don’t get to see her as much as I’d like.

The kitchen starts filling up with things you don’t recall buying. My fridge boasted 3 varieties of kombucha, (cosmic cranberry, ginger berry and multi-green) 2 packages of probiotic capsules (for making non-dairy coconut yogurt), Croatian organic artisan chocolate (that tasted like wax, to my palate) and Skyr, which I’m still not sure how to pronounce properly.

The tea drawer (yes, we have an entire drawer devoted to tea), filled up with several varieties of ginger tea as well as some turmeric concoction. The pantry shelves featured 2 flavours of muesli, collagen powder and All-Dressed Chips.

One morning I opened my spice drawer and saw a rogue shaped jar of  something called New Bae Seasoning. I decant all my spices into the same shape jar, and file them alphabetically. Please don’t judge me, it’s how I keep my serenity.When I asked my daughter about it she excitedly told me that it’s a blend of different spices (Himalayan Pink Salt, Paprika, Celery, Black Pepper, Ancho Chili Powder, Cayenne, Cardamom, Allspice, Mace, Bay Leaves), and makes everything you put it on taste better. That night we sprinkled some on diced sweet potatoes and roasted them. I was hooked. We used it all summer on fish, chicken and all our roasted and grilled veggies. It was even delicious sprinkled on top of hummus. When she left at the end of the summer, she took her jar with her, but left me the probiotic capsules!

I ordered my own jar, online at purefeast.com .   A few other online retailers carry it as well, but they seem to be out of stock when I last checked.

Here’s how to make these delicious tartines (that’s french for open-faced sandwich, because we’re fancy around here!)

I used butternut squash and sliced it very thin. Use your favourite fall veggie. Roasted broccoli would also be delicious.
Make sure you start with some really good bread and toast or grill it, so that it’s crunchy.  I found a new bakery in my neighbourhood here in Ottawa that sells amazing artisan breads. If you’re in Ottawa, check our Mamie Clafouti’s on Richmond Rd.
If you have an extra 15 minutes, make your own ricotta. I will include the recipe in the link below. But if time is tight, use store-bought. It will still be really good. Choose an assertive green to top your tartine with. I found micro arugula, but regular arugula or some shredded radicchio would be good choices. You want something bitter to counter balance the spicy-sweet squash and mild ricotta. A drizzle of honey is an excellent way to finish.

Click here to print recipe for Autumn Ricotta and Squash Tartines.

Roasted Squash Wedges with Pomegranate, Chermoula and Tahini

3 platesPeople tell my husband all the time how lucky he is. They imagine that being married to a food blogger is heaven, with something fresh and exciting for dinner every night. I’m here to dispell that image. I like to shoot in natural light. The optimal time for shooting in my kitchen is between 11 am -2 pm. By dinnertime, the food is cold and has been manhandled so much, nobody would want to eat it.

Often he will arrive home to a kitchen that looks like a tornado went through it. When I’m shooting, I try out different plates, bowls, and assorted props to get the right look. Those dishes pile up on the counter and in the sink. He generously and uncomplainingly washes those dishes. Curiously, he is opposed to drying dishes. He just likes to pile them up to let them air dry. But I’m not criticizing.

On days when I’m not shooting a new post, I’m just like you. I have a small repertoire of meals that I make on a weekly basis. Roasted squash is one of those items in the rotation. I either cut it into french fries or round circles. I always use butternut squash. I’m in a squash rut.

On a visit to the market last week, I was inspired to up my squash game and try some different varieties. Assorted Squash The jade green ones with the light green stripes are Kabocha squash. They are a Japanese squash that is fairly new to North America. Kabocha squash has a delicate honeyed sweetness and a smooth, almost fiberless texture. No need to peel this baby as the skin is very thin and roasts up crispy and delicious.

The deep orange ones, that look like they are topped with a Turk’s turban are aptly named Turban Squash. They have so much personality. The taste is quite mild and the texture is floury, making it perfect for soups. Mostly it’s used as a decorative squash because it’s just so cute.

The smaller orange and yellow squash are known as Sweet Dumplings. Diminutive in size but mighty in flavour, these little guys are sweet and delicious. Bonus points because the skin is edible and you don’t have to peel them. I sliced a Kobacha and a Sweet Dumpling into wedges and removed the seeds.cutting turban squashThe October issue of delicious magazine was the source for this gorgeous dish. I adapted it slightly. spices

ready for roasting Once roasted the dish is garnished with toasted salted pumpkin seeds and pomegranate. I added some salty ricotta salata cheese, but feta or goat cheese would also be great.Pomegranate There are two sauces to drizzle on top. The first is a chermoula sauce, a spicy herb sauce often used in Moroccan cuisine.The second sauce is a tahini-based mixture. While you could certainly serve this without the sauces, they really elevate the dish to something special.

Click here to print recipe for Roasted Squash Wedges with Pomegranate, Chermoula, and Tahini.

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Smoked Paprika Roasted Squash

2 platters 1We’re all familiar with the concept that small changes can add up to big differences. The internet abounds with lists that I seem powerless to resist clicking on. You know the ones I mean; 7 Small Changes That Will Make a Big Difference in Your Life, 10 Small Changes Which Make a Big Difference11 Small Lifestyle Changes That Can Make A Big Difference In Your Health & Happiness.

Last week I made a small change of my own, which, by the way, I have yet to see on any of these lists. We eat butternut squash at least once a week in our house. I always prepare it the same way. I cut it into sticks like french fries, drizzle on olive oil, salt, pepper and smoked paprika and  roast it at 400°F for 45 minutes.

As I peeled the squash a crazy thought flitted through my brain. What if I changed the way I usually cut the squash?  Wild, I know! I went rogue and cut thin circles.slicing squashThose lists always advise you to take it slow and not to make too many changes at once, so I kept it consistent and mixed the squash with my usual combo of olive oil, salt, pepper and smoked paprika. Smoked paprika, if you’ve never used it, is fantastic. I won’t go so far as to say it’s life changing, but it is pretty damn amazing. It makes everything taste better. I put that shit on everything.salt pepper and paprikamixing bowl and baking sheet2 baking sheetsI was actually surprised at how different the squash turned out from when I cut it into fries. The slices baked up more tender on the inside and crisper on the exterior. My squash fries never got golden brown like this. They were either limp and pale after 45 minutes or if I left them in longer, they burned. These circles were consistently golden brown with an outstanding texture.dipping in chipotle mayoI’m not a scientist, but I think the reason for this difference is that the amount of surface area that was exposed to the heat of the oven was greater when the squash was cut into circles, vs. the fry shape, so the squash had better chance to release all its moisture before crisping up.

If you’re serving this to company, scatter a few pomegranate seeds on top and whip up a dip. Mix one small chipotle chile in adobo sauce (seeded and chopped fine) into 1/2 a cup of regular or light mayo. (Don’t use fat free).

Here’s a tip for what to do with the remainder of the chiles in the can. Take a few minutes to seed them all. Puree the seeded chiles in the food processor and then spread the paste out on a parchment lined baking sheet. Put it in the freezer until firm and then break it up into large pieces and store in a ziploc bag in the freezer. It will keep for months. Just break a small piece off whenever you need it. It defrosts very quickly. it’s great on chicken, fish and in rice.platter on white table

Click here to print recipe for Smoked Paprika Roasted Squash.

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