Spinach, roasted butternut, pomegranate salad with cashews and maple mustard balsamic dressing

Spinach, roasted butternut, pomegranate salad with cashews and maple mustard balsamic dressing

I made this salad last night for dinner and it was really good. I will try to document amounts here, but you can use whatever amounts of each ingredient that you like. Also, any nuts will probably work. I have a lot of cashews on hands, so that is what I used. Ditto the salad greens. I had spinach, so that is what I used, but anything you like will work.

For the salad:

Salad greens of choice

Cubed butternut squash, roasted at 375 for about 25 minutes until soft and beginning to brown

Pomegranate seeds

Cashews, roasted in a dry non-stick pan over medium-ish heat until brown

For the dressing (this is amount made enough for at least two plate-sized salads):

1 Tbsp Olive Oil

2 tsp Dijon Mustard

2 tsp Balsamic Vinegar

1 tsp Maple Syrup

Pinch Garlic Granules

Salt and Pepper

I layered my salad on big plate : spinach, then squash, then pomegranate, lastly cashews and drizzled the dressing over it all.

Quinoa Stuffed Delicata Squash

Finally something autumnal! The weather has cooled off at last, and I got lots of squash and some sage in the CSA this week, so I present stuffed squash. I used delicata, but you can use any winter squash like acorn or pumpkin or butternut...


1 delicata squash
1/2 tsp olive oil
1/2 cup cooked quinoa (I cooked mine in broth with sauteed onions and garlic)
2 Tbsp garbanzo beans (I used the rest of the can to make hummus)
2 tsp chopped fresh sage, or to taste
salt and pepper
1-2 Tbsp Cashew Parmesan
Preheat the oven to 350

Cut the squash in half lengthwise and rub with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper

Combine the cooked quinoa, garbanzo beans, and sage in a small bowl Season as desired with salt and pepper and cashew parmesan. Stuff the squash halves, mounding the stuffing as needed and sprinkle with a little more cashew cheese. Bake until the squash is tender and the top is browned, 20-25 minutes.

Butternut Squash Lasagna

Oh, I really wanted to make something heart-shaped for Valentine's Day. I'm not exactly sure why that is, but I did. I tossed dozens of ideas around, but none of them seemed appropriate somehow. So finally I gave up on heart-shaped, and just went for yummy.

Make this lasagna for your sweetie, and they will be yours forever!


Butternut Squash Lasagna


Inspired by a recipe from Giada de Laurentiis

1 Medium Butternut Squash (about 2 lbs)
Olive Oil for Rubbing the Squash
Salt and Pepper
1/2 Cup Water
3 Tbsp Butter
3 tbsp Flour
3 Cups Milk (2% or Whole)
1/2 Loosely Packed Fresh Basil Leaves
Salt and Pepper
1 1/2 - 2 Cups Shredded Mozzarella Cheese- depending on how cheesy you like it!
1/4 Cup Shredded Parmesan Cheese
6 No-Bake Lasagna Noodles
Olive Oil or Butter for Greasing Baking Pan

Preheat the oven to 350. Cut the squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Rub the cut sides of the squash with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place cut-side down in a baking dish, add 1/2 cup water, cover and bake until very tender, about 45-60 minutes. Alternatively, you can cook the squash covered in the microwave until tender, about 15 minutes. When cool enough to handle, scoop out the flesh, mash it up with a fork, and set aside.

Melt the butter in a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Whisk in the flour and continue whisking for about one minute. Gradually add the milk, whisking the whole time to prevent lumps. Continue cooking over medium to medium-high heat, whisking constantly, until the sauce comes to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, and continue cooking until thickened a bit, about 5 minutes. Whisk often to prevent lumps. Remove from heat.

Put the basil leaves in a food processor and pulse 3 or 4 times to chop them up. Add about 1/2 of the sauce to the processor and process until the basil is well-incorporated. Return the basil-sauce to the rest of the sauce in the pan, and stir to combine.

Preheat the oven to 375

Lightly grease an 8 x 8 inch baking dish. Pour about 1/2 cup sauce in the bottom. Cover the sauce with 2 of the lasagna noodles. Spread 1/2 of the squash over the noodles. Sprinkle about 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese over the squash. Repeat the layers : sauce, noodles, squash, mozzarella. Drizzle some sauce over this layer of mozzarella, cover with 2 more noodles, and pour the remaining sauce over top. Cover tightly with foil and bake until nice and bubbly and the noodles are soft, about 35-40 minutes. Remove from the oven. Take off the foil and sprinkle with the remaining mozzarella and the parmesan cheese. Return to the oven until the top is nicely browned, 10-15 minutes longer. Let sit for about 15 minutes before serving.

For a printer-friendly version of this recipe, click here.

Butternut Squash Polenta

This polenta is really tasty. Polenta is really tasty on it's own without squash. And cooking it in the oven makes it a super simple dish to prepare. The addition of the squash just gives it an extra body and smoothness that makes it really special.








Butternut Squash Polenta

2 Cups Stock or Broth (Veggie or Chicken)
1 1/4 Cups Water
1 Cup Polenta
1 Tbsp Butter
1/4-1/2 Cup Parmesan Cheese
1 Medium Butternut Squash
Olive Oil for Rubbing the Squash
1/2 Cup or so Water
Salt and Pepper

Preheat the oven to 350

Cut in half and seed the squash. Rub the cut sides with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Put cut-side down in a baking dish and add about 1/2 cup of water. Cover with a lid or foil, and bake until very soft, 40-60 minutes. When the squash is done cooking, remove it to a plate to cool, then scoop out the flesh, mash with a fork, and set aside. Alternatively, if you don't have room in the oven while the polenta is baking, you can cook the squash in the microwave: put in the halved, seeded squash and 1/2 cup water in a microwave safe dish with a lid or cover with plastic wrap. Cook on high for 10-15 minutes until very soft.

Butter an 8-inch square baking dish. Pour in the stock or broth and water. Stir in the polenta and 1 Tbsp of butter. Bake the polenta for 50 minutes. Remove from the oven and stir in the cheese. The polenta may be cooked at this point, if it is not, return it to the over for another 10 minutes.

When the polenta is done cooking, stir in the squash. Adjust seasoning as needed and serve.

Butternut Pinwheels with Cheese Sauce

This was a fun dish to make. The pinwheels were great, the sauce was okay. It definitely suffered from the lack of fresh basil. I would not recommend making it unless you have fresh basil, I think it would really have made it pop. But alas, my basil is long done for the year, and the store's supply did not look very good, so I went with dried. Live and learn.

Butternut Pinwheels with Cheese Sauce

For the Sauce

1 Tbsp Butter
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
2 Tbsp Flour
1 cup Broth
1 cup Milk
4 Ounces Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
2 Tbsp Shredded Parmesan Cheese
2 Tbsp Chopped fresh basil (or 2 tsp dried) Fresh is really best in this recipe
White Pepper to Taste

Melt the butter in a sauce pan over medium heat. Add the olive oil and stir together. Stir in the flour and cook for about 2 or 3 minutes to get rid of the raw flour taste. Whisk in the broth, then add the milk. Cook for about 5 minutes, then stir in the mozzarella cheese in batched until melted. Stir in the Parmesan cheese. Add the basil and white pepper. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed.

For the Pinwheels

Preheat Oven to 375

One Butternut Squash (The one I had was about 1 1/4 pounds)
3-4 Fresh Sage Leaves
1 Small Clove Garlic
1 1/2 tsp Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper to Taste
4 Tbsp Minced Shallots
4 Tbsp Milk
4 Tbsp Grated Parmesan Cheese
8 Lasagna Noodles

Cut the squash in half and remove the seeds. Chop the sage leaves and garlic. Mix the sage, garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Rub over cut sides of the squash. Put the squash in a baking pan with a lid or cover with foil and cook until very soft, 45-60 minutes. Scrape the squash out of the shell and puree in a food processor. Melt the butter in a skillet over medium-low heat. Add the shallots and cook until nicely softened, 8-10 minutes. Add the squash puree and the milk. Cook until heated through and add the Parmesan cheese.

Cook the lasagna noodles according to package directions. Drain them, then lay out one or two on a plate. Cover the length of each noodle with a thin layer of the squash, then roll it up. Spoon some sauce over and serve!

Bulgur Stuffed Acorn Squash Recipe

Yes, another squash recipe. I love bulgur, and I really enjoyed this dish, although I probably wouldn't consider this a Thanksgiving recipe, I'm sure it could be. I think of it more as a main course. Some sauteed greens on the side, and you've got yourself dinner! I will list approximate quantities for one small acorn squash (2 servings).

Bulgur Stuffed Acorn Squash

1 Small-ish Acorn Squash
1 large or 2 Small Cloves Garlic
2 tsp Olive Oil (divided)
1/4 cup Diced Onions
Another Clove of Garlic
1/2 Cup Bulgur
1 Cup Broth (chicken or veggie)
1 Link Pre-Cooked Sausage (I really like chicken and sundried tomato, but there are tons out there, use your favorite)
2 Tbsp Shredded Part Skim Mozzarella Cheese
1-2 Tbsp Pine nuts
1/2 tsp Dried Basil
2 Small Balls Marinated Fresh Mozzarella (or other cheese to melt over top- I chose fresh mozzarella because I had some leftover from last weekend. I think about any cheese would do the job')

Preheat oven to 375

Cut the squash in half and remove the seeds. Rub the cut sides with 1 tsp olive oil. Place cut side down in a baking dish, with one or two garlic cloves (depending on size) tucked into the cavity. Bake until soft, about 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and turn cut side up.

Meanwhile, saute the onions in 1 tsp olive oil until beginning to brown. Add a garlic clove (crushed or minced) and continue cooking for about a minute. Add the broth and bring to a boil. Stir in the bulgur, reduce heat, cover and cook until the liquid is absorbed, about 15-18 minutes. Remove from heat.

Slice the sausage in half lengthwise, then slice each half in half again (you want 4 strips), then cut into small pieces. Saute the sausage in a non-stick pan until browned, about 6 minutes.

Combine the bulgur, sausage, shredded cheese, pine nuts and basil. Stuff into the squash halves, and return the squash to the oven. Cook until heated through, about 10 minutes. Thinly slice the fresh mozzarella and arrange over top of squashes. Place under the broiler until the cheese is melted and slightly browned, about 4 minutes.

Sage and Garlic Scented Butternut with Apples

How's that for a recipe title? I am still on the Thanksgiving kick, and I still have a lot of apples and now a counter full of butternut and acorn squashes, so I got to experimenting this afternoon. This is kind of like scalloped butternut with an apple topping, but the topping is not crunchy. This turned out really great! I was quite pleased with both the flavor and the texture of the final product.

And, again, I am not going to list actual amounts. This is the kind of dish that you can easily make as much as you need depending on how many eaters you have. My sweetie is out of town for a few days, and that means I am on my own come dinner time, so I just made a little bit.

Sage and Garlic Scented Butternut Squash with Apples

Butternut squash
Garlic
Fresh Sage Leaves
Olive Oil
Apples
Salt and Pepper
Broth or Water

Preheat the oven to 375

Peel and seed the squash. Halve it, then slice it very thinly. Toss the squash with minced garlic, chopped sage leaves, and a little bit of olive oil. Layer the slices in a greased baking dish. No need to be perfect here, just arrange them in layers until the dish is nearly full. Then core your apple and slice. I like to cut the apple in quarters, then cut the core out on a diagonal. Cover the squash slices with apples. Pour a bit of broth or water over the top (This is just to help the squash cook up nicely, maybe 1/4 cup of liquid for an 8 inch square pan), cover with foil and bake for about 45 minutes until the squash is tender. Remove the foil and check for doneness. At this point my squash was very tender, but there was way too much liquid in the pan, so I put it back into the oven for about another 7 minutes.

Arugula Risotto Stuffed Kabocha Squash Recipe

I went snooping around the internet looking at stuffed squash recipes and noticed that most of them involve rice. I have never made nor eaten a squash stuffed with rice, so this was news to me! Shows how much I know. Anyhow, this is what I came up with when I decided to try a rice stuffed winter squash.





Arugula Risotto Stuffed Kabocha Squash

2 Small Kabocha Squash
Olive Oil
1/2 Onion
2 Cloves Garlic
1 Cup Arborio Rice
Chicken or Veggie Broth, up to 5 cups (I used about 4 this time)
1/2 Cup White Wine
One Bunch Arugula (About 2 Cups Coarsely Chopped)
1/2 Cup (Or more) Grated Parmesan Cheese
1/4 Cup Grated Mozzarella Cheese

Preheat oven to 375

Cut the squash in half and remove the seeds. Rub the cut sides with olive oil and place cut side down in a baking dish. Bake until it can be easily pierced with a fork or wooden skewer.

Dice and saute the onions in olive oil until very soft. Add the crushed or minced garlic, then the rice. Cook until the rice is beginning to brown, about 4 minutes. Add the wine and stir, once the wine has evaporated, add about 1/2 cup of broth. Let simmer until the broth has nearly evaporated, and keep adding broth in this fashion until the rice is tender. This can take anywhere from 25-35 minutes. When the rice is cooked, stir in the arugula, then the parmesan cheese.

Remove the squash from the oven and turn cut side up. Stuff the squash halves with the rice, you might not need all of the rice. Sprinkle the mozzarella cheese over the top and return to the oven until heated through and browned on top. I ended up putting them under the broiler for a few minutes to get the tops browned.

Butternut Risotto Recipe

Yeah, yeah, I know. Everybody is making butternut risotto right now. But why not? It's so delicious. And there is no flavor combination like butternut, sage and garlic! So here is my take on everyone's favorite fall risotto.

Butternut Squash Risotto

One Butternut Squash - I forgot to weigh mine, it was pretty small: yielded about 2 1/2 cups cooked squash
5-6 Fresh Sage Leaves
1 Garlic Clove
1Tbsp (more or less) Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper

1/2 Onion
2 Cloves Garlic
1 Cup Arborio Rice
Chicken or Veggie Broth, up to 5 cups (I used about 4 this time)
1/2 Cup White Wine
1/2 Cup (Or more) Grated Parmesan Cheese
Fresh Ground Pepper


Preheat oven to 375

Cut the squash in half and remove the seeds. Chop the sage leaves and garlic. Mix the sage, garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Rub over all cut sides of the sqash. Put the squah in a baking pan with a lid or cover with foil and cook until nearly done, about 35 minutes. Remove from oven and when cool enough to handle scoop out of the shell. Cut into about 1/2 inch dice. Some may be to soft to dice, just add this to the rice with the cubes.

Meantime, dice and saute the onions in olive oil until very soft. Add the crushed or minced garlic, then the rice. Cook until the rice is beginning to brown, about 4 minutes. Add the wine and stir, once the wine has evaporated, add about 1/2 cup of broth. Let simmer until the broth has nearly evaporated, and keep adding broth in this fashion until the rice is tender. This can take anywhere from 25-35 minutes. When the rice is cooked, stir in the cheese to melt, then add in the butternut sqash. Add black pepper to taste, and pass more cheese at the table if desired.

Apple Stuffed Acorn Squash Recipe

This is an adaptation of a recipe I got from Live Earth Farm CSA.

Apple Stuffed Acorn Squash

1 Acorn Squash
2 Apples
1 Stalk Celery
1/2 Small Onion
2 tsp Butter
2 Tbsp Raisins
Olive Oil for rubbing on squash

Preheat oven to 350

Cut the sqash in half and scoop out the seeds. Rub the cut sides with olive oil and place in a baking dish cut side down. I like to add a little water to the dish to sort of steam the squash, but that is optional. Bake the squash for 25 minutes or so.

Meanwhile, chop your onion and celery into a fine dice. Melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add the onions and celery and cook until pretty soft, but not brown, about 5-7 minutes. Core and chop the apples (about 1/2 inch dice) and add to the onions and celery in the pan. Cook until starting to soften, 5 minutes, then add the raisins. Continue cooking a few minutes to let the raising begin to soften and plump up.

Remove the squash from the oven and turn it cut side up. Fill with the apple mixture and return to the oven. Continue cooking until the squash is completely soft and the top is a bit browned, 20-30 minutes more.