Roast Butternut Squash with Chickpeas

A wholesome simple winter meal which I like to serve as a warm salad, this roasted butternut squash dish is quite versatile. A bit more gravy and it can be a curry eaten with naan or rice; boiled in vegetable broth, it can be a delicious soup served with homemade dampers.

In this recipe, I toss in some garlic and cooked chickpeas with roasted butternut squash and fiery spices and serve it topped with shredded zucchini, thinly sliced red onions, and a wedge of lemon, plus some plain yogurt on the side. This is a fairly typical way of serving a spicy vegetable side with flatbreads like parathas and naan in India.

As I don;t typically measure the spices for such an impromptu dish, here's just a list of the ingredients used: tamarind paste, tomato paste, garam masala, turmeric and salt to taste.

Roasted Butternut Squash, Sweet Potatoes, Kale, Bell Peppers, Red Onions

Roasted vegetables are the easiest and the most satisfying around this time of the year. A plateful of  these fresh-from-the-oven roasted vegetables is a meal in itself.

Toss the butternut squash, sweet potatoes, bell peppers and onions with some olive oil, herbs, grated Parmesan cheese, paprika and other spices and place in a single layer in a roasting pan and bake in a 425°F oven for about 25 to 30 minutes minutes.

Toss the chopped kale with some olive oil and spices and add it to the roasting pan and bake till kale is crispy and the other veggies are roasted, about another  8 to 10 minutes, making sure kale doesn't char.

Garnish with grated Parmesan and serve hot.

Chard Rice with Butternut Squash Ribbons and Pine Nuts

Peel the butternut squash, and then, use the peeler to cut out some strips of the butternut squash. Deep fry these strips to make the butternut squash ribbons. Keep handy for garnish.

Start some rice cooking - either the sticky kind of Thai, Jasmine or California short-grain, or my favorite brown basmati or any other long-grain rice.

Toast some pine nuts and keep handy for garnish

Sautée some chopped veggies like onions, mushrooms, and bell peppers in a tablespoon of olive oil, with a pinch of all spice powder, some Szechuan flower peppercorns, salt and turmeric powder (optional). Then, add chopped chard and cook till it wilts. Stir in the cooked rice to make the Chard Rice.

Serve the Chard rice topped with butternut squash ribbons, toasted pine nuts and chopped spring onions.

Black rice, Bean salad, and Pan-fried Butternut Squash

'Kadhambam', as they say in Tamil, is a catch-all word for 'combination/mixture' of unlikely things.

Kadhambam is what this dinner turned out to be one weekend:
- a tiny butternut squash was beckoning to be sliced and pan-fried with just a touch of salt+pepper
- a cup or so of black rice bought on a whim from the bulk food store was waiting to be cooked
- last of the Pickled Pearl Onions needed to be used up to make room for others
- a quart jar full of 4-bean salad was developing flavor for over a week and ready to be enjoyed

Black rice was cooked in the rice cooker much like brown rice, with the last of the pickled pearl onions tossed in and a light sprinkling of salt.

Four Bean Salad: Soak and cook white beans, black beans, chickpeas, and pinto beans till firmly cooked, not mushy. Add some chopped zucchini and onions, if preferred. Toss with favorite balsamic vinaigrette.

I make a batch of this Bean Salad (3-bean, or 4-bean, sometimes even 5-bean) on and off and leave it in the fridge to use as salad topper for quick meals - adds the proteins and carbs to the green salad and doubles as a dressing/vinaigrette. 

Winter Squash Soup topped with Caramelized Onions and Home-garden Herbs

As thick wholesome winter soups go this is one of the simplest, the hardest part being peeling and cubing the winter squashes. If it is available peeled and chopped, all the better. I used the last of the home-garden butternut squash and an acorn squash.

The flavors are flexible for this soup; I just go with simple herbs usually as butternut and acorn squash have a rich flavor of their own, tending to be on the sweet side. The weed-like rosemary and oregano from the home-garden was handy and turned out good.

Ingredients
6 to 8 cups chunks of acorn and butternut squash
1 medium onion, sliced thin
2 to 3 Tbsp coconut oil
2 Tbsp chopped rosemary
1 Tbsp chopped oregano
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp Madras curry powder (optional)
2 Tbsp sambal oelek (less if preferred)
 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar (optional)
a few drops of Liquid Smoke Hickory seasoning (optional)
salt to taste
water or vegetable stock as needed

Preparation

1. Heat 1 Tbsp of oil in a cast iron skillet, add the onions, a pinch of salt and sauté till golden brown; add a splash of balsamic vinegar if preferred and keep sautéing till caramelized; add a bit more oil if needed
2. Heat a Tbsp of oil in a pan and pan-roast the chunk of winter squash till browned on the outside; add some stock, enough to immerse the chunks, cover and cook till squash is done
3. Puree the cooked squash, return to simmer adding more stock or water as needed;  add the spices and half of the chopped fresh herbs; add a drop or so of hickory seasoning if preferred; stir well
4. Ladle the warm soup into a bowl, garnish with more fresh herbs, top with a heaped spoon of caramelized onion and serve warm

Butternut Squash Soup with Olive & Herb Dampers

Hot Butternut Squash soup with warm dampers fresh from the oven is a wonderful winter treat... at least for the adults. The kids don't seem to like it much. At least not so far... maybe a few years down the road they'll start loving it?

For the soup, I find it easiest to peel, core, cut into chunks and cook the squash in a pressure cooker, with some onions. Then, mash it well, simmer it in a broth with flavors, and finally, purée it before serving for a smooth texture.

The dampers are really simple and quick, done in about 20-25 minutes, about the time it takes to finish up the soup.

Ingredients
1 medium butternut squash, peeled, cored, chopped into chunks
1 medium onion, chopped
Herbs: Thyme, Sage, Rosemary, Basil, Marjoram
salt to taste
1-2 cups evaporated milk
water as needed



Dampers:
3 cups self-rising flour
1 tsp salt
¼ cup chopped pitted olives
½ cup herbs: parsley, chives, oregano
3¼ oz melted butter
½ cup water
½ cup milk

Preparation

1. Butternut Squash Soup: pressure cook the squash chunks and onion; then, mash with a potato masher or purée if preferred; return to stove, simmer on low adding evaporated milk and herbs, adjust salt to taste; add water to adjust consistency of soup, if preferred
2. Herb &a Olive Dampers:
   • Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl, make a well, add the wet ingredients, stir till incorporated, then turn it over onto a floured surface and knead till smooth
   • Shape into a ball, lay it on a greased cookie sheet and press down to make an 8-inch round
   • Score gently into 8 sections with a sharp knife taking care not to cut through
   • Bake in a 415°F oven for about 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350°F and bake for another 15 minutes or so till golden brown and done - i.e., sounds hollow when tapped on the surface
3. Serve the warm fresh dampers with the hot soup

Butternut squash poduthuval

Butternut squash is a favorite winter squash - its texture and mild sweetness makes it quite versatile. It takes well to spices, but is also wonderful with a mild flavoring of coconut+green cilies, which is what I do here.

This is a simple side which can be served with rotis or rice and rasam or sambar.

This is a quick and easy recipe that is pretty much the same as my young green jackfruit recipe. Can substitute Pumpkins for Butternut Squash.

Ingredients
4-5 cups peeled diced butternut squash
1/2 cup dry grated coconut
3-4 green chilies (adjust depending on variety of chili)
salt to taste
1 Tbsp coconut oil (or canola oil)
water as needed

tempering:
1 tsp urad dal
1 tsp chana dal
1 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp cumin seeds

Preparation

1. grind the grated coconut and green chilies into a fine powdery paste and set aside
2. heat oil in a pan, add the tempering: chana dal first, when it starts to turn golden add the urad dal and when they turn brown add the mustard seeds and then the cumin seeds
3. when mustard seeds splutter and die down, add the diced butternut squash, some salt, the coconut-chili paste and stir well till it is coated with oil and tempering
4. add a few tablespoons of water, cover and let the squash cook a bit till it is soft but not mushy; stir once in a while
5. off heat garnish with cilantro or curry leaves, if available
6. serve warm with roti or steamed basmati rice