An Old Fashioned Sunday Dinner

When our friends invited our family over for an “old-fashioned Sunday dinner,” we eagerly accepted. We knew we were in for a treat. Steve and Judy are incredible hosts who appreciate good food. Judy loves to cook and it shows!

The menu consisted of a tossed spinach and kale salad, multi-grain dinner rolls, relish tray, roasted broccoli, roasted butternut squash, chicken piccata, and a Swedish almond cake. Is your mouth watering yet? Yes, it was a feast. While every bite was delicious—trust me, I ate some of everything—the butternut squash was the star of the show. Seriously good squash. So good that I literally licked the spoon and picked the last little bits out of the serving dish when we were cleaning up the table.

If you’d have told me a few years ago that I’d enjoy a squash of any sort, I’d have laughed at you. My memories of squash are overcooked, mushy blobs of orange goo drowning in a mess of butter and brown sugar. No disrespect to my beloved Grandma who prepared this dish, but in my opinion, veggies should be savory and not cavity-inducing sweet. Personally, I think sugar belongs in cookies, not dripping off of veggies.

Judy’s squash was different. It was a simple, almost rustic dish with rich flavors and textures. It was mostly savory, with a hint of natural sweetness and topped with the crunch of pecans and the earthy, herby goodness of sage. A perfect old-fashioned Sunday dinner dish. By eliminating added sugars and limiting the butter to a tablespoon or less, the nutritional benefits (think vitamins A & C and potassium) shine through. And, butternut squash boasts a perfect NuVal score of 100.

It’s a simple and quick recipe to prepare. Nobody has to know you weren’t slaving in the kitchen. It will be our little secret (wink!). The hardest part of the recipe is peeling the squash as it has a tough skin. I use a vegetable peeler and scoop out the seeds and “guts” with a spoon. Then just dice it up with a sharp knife. Or you can let somebody do the work for you and buy already diced butternut squash in your supermarket produce section. Your choice. I won’t judge.

Best Ever Roasted Butternut Squash with Pecans and Sage

• 4-8 cups peeled, diced fresh butternut squash (1-2 cut up whole squashes)
• olive oil—just enough to toss and coat to keep from sticking to the pan
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 Tablespoon butter
• 2-3 Tablespoons toasted, chopped pecans
• 1-2 Tablespoons chopped fresh sage

1. Preheat your oven to 425.
2. Place butternut squash cubes on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with a small amount of olive oil and toss to coat. Then, shake to arrange them in a single layer for roasting. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
3. Bake at 425 for 20-25 minutes or until slightly browned, stirring halfway through cooking time.
4. Place roasted squash in a serving bowl and toss with butter, pecans and sage. Serve and enjoy.

Check out my new kitchen gadget. My parents gave me an herb scissors for Christmas. This handy tool made quick work out of chopping the sage.

Give Squash a Chance!

If you’re like I was and think you don’t like squash, give this recipe a shot. You just might be surprised. Here’s a link to Butternut Squash Soup—another one of my favorite butternut squash recipes. It’s a little more labor intensive, but so worth the effort. If you’re really getting daring and want to branch out to other squash varieties, give my creamy, cheesy, spaghetti squash recipe a try. It is a wonderful, hearty winter dish that your kids will ask for again and again.

Please leave a comment (or a photo) below of your favorite squash recipe. I’m always looking for new ways to prepare this versatile vegetable. Please share!

Warm Winter Wishes,

Kelly

This is a guest post by Kelly Radi. Passionate about food and nutrition, Kelly is a freelance writer, NuVal expert, former BLEND employee, and current BLEND advocate.  A wife and mother of 2 teenagers, Kelly lives in Sartell where she is often spotted at Coborn’s scouring the shelves in search of the best NuVal scores. She enjoys cooking, playing tennis, and sitting down with a good book. She can be reached at radi.to.write@gmail.com. 

The opinions expressed in this blog are the opinions of the writer and not the opinions of NuVal LLC, Coborn’s, Inc., BLEND, and the CentraCare Health Foundation.  Read more “Peek Into Kelly’s Kitchen” blogs, here!