I tend to agonize over weights and measures and ratios in recipes. For many of the things I bake, little details can be important – and I like to understand how everything works. But things don’t always need a lot of thought or time to be amazing. Here’s my take on butternut squash, which enjoyed rave reviews from my family this Thanksgiving. There is no recipe, just a combination of good quality ingredients.
Ingredients: A butternut squash, some melted butter, salt, toasted pine nuts (pecans would be fine), goat cheese, and maple syrup.
Note – To prepare a butternut squash for cooking: (1) peel the skin away in long strips down the length of the squash using a sharp vegetable peeler, (2) remove the top and bottom of the squash with a long sharp knife, (3) slice through the middle of the squash lengthwise, & (4) scoop-out the seeds using a spoon.
Butternut Squash – quartered lengthwise and cut into 1/2″ chunks.
1/2 stick butter – melted.
Toss the squash with the melted butter and a big pinch of kosher salt.
Spread on a sheet pan and bake at 400° F for 35-40 minutes.
Note – Using a spatula, move and flip the squash every 10 minutes. Cook until the squash is fully “fork-tender” and it begins to darken in color – fully cooked butternut squash will start to look like glossy cooked peaches.
The cooked butternut squash.
Note – I toasted my pine nuts in a skillet over medium heat. Nuts can go from fragrant and toasty to burnt in a matter of seconds so whenever you toast nuts, use low to moderate heat and keep them moving. Don’t leave them unattended.
Some pine nuts.
Toss-in the pine nuts, a bunch of good quality goat cheese, and some
REAL maple syrup.
Don’t get caught-up in amounts here. I used a handful of pine nuts, several ounces of goat cheese (whatever came in the smallish package – like 4 or 5 ounces), and enough maple syrup to coat the squash. Since all the ingredients taste great individually, it’s kinda hard to screw-up the combination. If you’re afraid of commitment, just be conservative when you start piling-on the ingredients – you can always add more of something to taste.
Stir. Done.
Final Thoughts – Goat cheese is a very mild cheese – it doesn’t taste goat-y. It is tart like cream cheese and it has a somewhat similar texture. To my way of thinking, the cheese bridges the savory of the baked squash and the sweet of the maple syrup.
This makes a nice alternative to candied yams. It reheats brilliantly in the microwave so it’s a great dish to prepare in advance.
And if you bring this as a side-dish for dinner with family of friends, they will appreciate the fall colors and your creativity, and you will appreciate knowing that your dish will outclass everything else there. When people ask you for the recipe, tell them it’s something you just threw together. Because that’s the recipe.
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