Herb-Roasted Squash and Leeks

Running low on side dishes, it's time to fire this one up so I can keep the full-plate Thanksgiving-style dinners happening. I like butternut squash and I like leeks (the leek part was a little surprising) so this roasted vegetable dish sounded like a good one.

Herb-Roasted Squash and Leeks
from Cooking Club
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1/4 c olive oil
3 tbsp fresh rosemary leaves
1 tsp coarse salt
1 tsp pepper
2 1/2 lb. butternut squash, peeled, seeded, cubed (1 1/2 inches) (6 cups)
4 large leeks, sliced

Heat oven to 400°F.

Combine oil, rosemary, salt and pepper in a large bowl.


Toss butternut squash and leeks in oil mixture.


Spread on large rimmed baking sheet.


Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until vegetables are tender and slightly browned, stirring occasionally.



Slightly browned is exactly what the vegetables looked like at the end. Very slightly browned. And I'll tell you right now that the goal for cutting butternut squash is to aim for even-sized pieces, however big or small they wind up. Then, cut the leeks accordingly. My leek pieces were more wilted than some of the butternut squash pieces were soft. Regardless, the seasonings were tip-top. Honestly though, this recipe doesn't top the squash and Brussels sprouts recipe and I am beginning to doubt any will.

Cost:

• olive oil: $0.88
• fresh rosemary leaves: $1.29
• butternut squash: $2.39
• leeks: $2.99

Total: $7.55 or about $0.94 for each of eight servings.

Charred Autumn Squash Mash with Bacon

A few years ago I made twice-baked butternut squash potatoes. I adapted a recipe and it didn't turn out great. Looking back on it, I can see that I did things by choice I wouldn't do the same way today. Then sometimes I just get excited and go astray by accident because I didn't read the ingredients list thoroughly and it's still good.

Originally written for a buttercup squash, I used a butternut in this recipe. And honestly, I didn't realize that until right now. I didn't know that if a squash name started with "b" it'd be anything but a butternut. Did you? Not only was I supposed to use a buttercup, but the squash wasn't supposed to be peeled. I just looked at how long that squash line was on the ingredients list and assumed "peeled" was in there.

Charred Autumn Squash Mash with Bacon
adapted from Cooking Club, Fall 2013
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6 slices apple-wood smoked bacon, coarsely chopped
3 (6-inch) sprigs fresh thyme
3 (6-inch) sprigs fresh sage
3 lb. buttercup squash, halved lengthwise, seeded, cut into wedges (2-2.5")
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 c sliced shallots
3/4 - 1 c hot whole milk
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Heat oven to 400°F.

Cook bacon in large nonstick skillet over medium heat 4 to 5 minutes or until brown and slightly crisp; drain on paper towels. Reserve bacon drippings in skillet.


Line large rimmed baking sheet with foil, lightly coat foil with cooking spray. Arrange thyme and sage on baking sheet. Lightly brush cut edges of squash with 1-2 tablespoons of the reserved bacon drippings; place cut-side-down over herbs.

The hot bacon grease cooled quickly when brushed onto the squash pieces. The solidified grease made the squash look like candles.

Bake 20 minutes; turn squash. Bake until browned and tender, 10-40 minutes.

The second baking time was supposed to be 10-15 minutes according to the original recipe.

Transfer squash to large bowl; reserve herb sprigs. Using potato masher, mash squash until smooth.


Discard all but 1 tablespoon bacon drippings in skillet. Add butter to skillet and heat over medium until hot.


Add shallots; cook 1 minute or until softened, stirring frequently.


Reduce heat to low; stir in mashed squash.


Slowly stir in 3/4 cup milk, adding additional milk to desired consistency.


Crumble roasted herb leaves over squash, discarding stems.


Reserve 2 tablespoons bacon for garnish; stir in remaining bacon, salt and pepper.


Cook 3 to 5 minutes or until hot, stirring constantly. Serve garnished with reserved 2 tablespoons bacon.


As I said above, the recipe turned out well even though I didn't follow the directions to a T. I thought the milk in the squash mash would be weird, but nope, not at all. The roasted herbs looked crazy since they were so dark and crispy but what a pleasant little trick! With the bacon there was nice variation in texture and little flavor explosions. Yep, this was a good one.

When I do this next time, I'll plan for 60 minutes of roasting time and will flip the squash after 30 minutes.

Cost:

• apple-wood smoked bacon: $1.56
• fresh thyme: $1
• fresh sage: $0.56
• butternut squash: $2.76
• unsalted butter: $0.05
• shallots: $0.72
• whole milk: $0.25

Total: $6.90 or about $1.15 for each of six servings.

Classic Calabacitas

Looking for sides to accompany the chicken, I turned to my cookbooks. I wanted something with a Mexican flair, so perused The Border Cookbook and this recipe caught my eye. Having done a non-classic version of calabacitas and thought it superb, this one was a shoe-in. While I had my doubts, I needed to find out how this would compare.

Classic Calabacitas
adapted from The Border Cookbook
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2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp vegetable oil
5 c sliced zucchini and summer squash (about 2 lbs)
1 medium onion, chopped
2 c corn kernels
1/2 c chopped roasted Anaheim chile
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground canela
4 green onions, sliced
2 tbsp cilantro, minced

Warm the butter and oil in a large skillet over medium heat.


Add the squash and onion; saute for 10 minutes or until well wilted.


Stir in the corn, chile, salt, and canela. Cook, covered, another 10 minutes.


Add the green onions and cilantro; heat through.


Serve immediately.



I didn't think I'd much care for this calabacitas since I really, really, really liked the non-classic version I'd made last summer. It's not bad though. The cinnamon is really interesting and I don't mean that in a sarcastic eye-roll sort of a way. It contrasts and compliments the squash very nicely. Next time though the biggest skillet will be utilized and the squash won't be cooked quite as long - I prefer my squash to have a resistance to the teeth. And I might use more chile. That said, I'm not absolutely confident there will be a next time. I did like the other version very much.

Cost:

• butter: $0.14
• vegetable oil: $0.12
• zucchini and summer squash: $2
• onion: $0.30
• corn: $1.40
• Anaheim chile: $0.45
• green onions: $0.50
• cilantro: $0.25

Total: $5.16 or about $0.86 for each of six servings.

Southwestern Stuffed Spaghetti Squash

"Interesting" Yonetta said in the email including a link to this recipe. I'm not sure what that meant exactly, but I figured it didn't look half bad (but what Tex-Mexy sort of thing doesn't?) so I may as well give it a spin. At least it'd be super healthy. Most importantly, I think there's going to be lots of fiber in this so that'll help me get over all that cheese pizza I ate last week.

Southwestern Stuffed Spaghetti Squash
from Bev Cooks
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1 spaghetti squash, about 3 pounds
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 red onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalapeno pepper, minced (leave seeds in for more heat)
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp oregano, Mexican if you have it
1 tbsp chili powder
1 14.5 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 c frozen corn, thawed
coarse salt
freshly ground pepper
1/2 c freshly torn cilantro, plus more for garnish
1 lime
1 c cheddar cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Roast squash on a baking sheet for 50 minutes.

Spaghetti squash, washed and placed on small baking sheet, baked 50 minutes.

Let cool 20-30 minutes, then cut in half.


Spoon out the seeds, then using a fork, scrape up the flesh, reserving about 1/2-1" against the skin.


Heat oil in a medium skillet. Add the onion, garlic, jalapeno pepper and red bell pepper. Sauté 2 minutes.


Add cumin, oregano, chili powder, and salt and pepper to taste. Sauté another minute.


Add the beans, corn, and cilantro. Stir to combine.


Squeeze in the lime juice and give one last stir.


Add in half the “spaghetti” to the bean mixture and stir to combine. Taste and season accordingly.


Stuff each squash half with the mixture and top with cheese.


Return squash to oven until the cheese melts and gets all brown and bubbly. Garnish with cilantro.




Yep, this tastes really good! The cumin is a little on the heavy side for me and next time I'd cut back on it. Otherwise the flavors were spot on. Half a 3.11 lb. squash is a lot for one person to eat, so make sure you are hungry or plan on dividing each half to serve two.

I was thinking this would be good with chopped chicken in it. Man, now that I think about it this might be a fantastic way to use chicken tenderloins. They are small, you only get two per chicken, and it'd be just enough to get the meaty fix without turning the recipe into a chicken-based dish. Why didn't I think of this before I started?

Cost:

• spaghetti squash: $2.77
• extra-virgin olive oil: $0.36
• red onion: $0.44
• garlic cloves: $0.12
• jalapeno pepper: $0.10
• red bell pepper: $0.91
• black beans: $0.71
• frozen corn: $0.67
• cilantro: $0.49
• lime: $0.27
• cheddar cheese: $1.25

TOTAL: $8.09 or about $4.05 for each of two GIANT servings or about $2.03 for each of four not-quite-enough-for-a-main-dish-if-eaten-solo servings.