ST. LOUIS — Gwin's Tiny Kitchen shares a tasty butternut squash recipe ahead of Thanksgiving.
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Roasted Butternut Squash with Brown Butter and Pecans and Currants with Fried Sage Salsa Verde
Ingredients
- 1 2-4 pound butternut squash
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt, divided
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
Sage Pesto
- 12 Tablespoon (6 oz) butter, divided
- 2 cup sage leaves
- 1/2 cup fresh chopped parsley
- 3/4 cup Parmesan cheese
- 1/4 cup dried currents
- 1/4 cup dried apple chips
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1/2 cup toasted chopped pecans
- 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 425°F and line a large sheet pan with parchment paper or foil.
2. Lay your butternut squash on its side on a cutting
board and use your sharpest knife to cut off the top.
Then, carefully slice the squash in half, stem to stem.
Use a sturdy spoon to scrape and scoop out the insides
and discard them. Place the raw butternut squash cut
side down and lay a chopstick on each long-side of the
halves. Use a sharp, heavy knife to make evenly spaced
⅛-1/4-inch slices through the squash. Slice until the
blade of the knife hits the chopsticks on either side of
the squash.
3. Carefully lift the squash to a baking sheet and roast.
Drizzle each half with ½ tablespoon of olive oil and
spread to distribute the oil evenly. Sprinkle each with
salt and pepper. Place squash in the oven to roast for
about 45 minutes, depending on its size (start checking
at 40 minutes). The squash is done when it’s
caramelized (slightly burnished) and very tender, but
not mushy.
4. While the squash is roasting, melt your butter in a
skillet over medium heat. Once the butter is melted,
add the sage leaves and stir, scraping the bottom of the
pan when the butter starts to brown. Add the sage
leaves and cook for 2 minutes or so, or until the butter
is brown and the sage leaves are slightly crispy but not
burnt. Remove the sage and set aside to cool and crisp.
5. In a food processor, add parsley, parmesan cheese,
dried currents, apples, and pecan with a pinch of salt
and pepper. Give a few pulses until it is at a smaller size.
Add in 1/2 cup of browned butter, vinegar and 1 1/2
cup fried sage. Few pulses until it’s a consistent texture.
6. To serve, place the halves on a platter and drizzle with
reserve browned butter then top with sage pesto,
freshly grated Parmesan, salt, and more freshly ground
black pepper. Crumble a few sage leaves on top.
Notes
Note: If you want, you can take a fork to mash the
squash, then remove it from its skin, add it to a bowl,
and stir in the browned butter. Then top with the
crispy sage leaves and sage pesto and fresh Parmesan.