Garlic Acorn Squash

I decided to go all out for garlic one night and paired this with 40 Clove Garlic Chicken. In addition to adding a different garlic profile for the night, I finally discovered a squash dish that my husband really enjoyed.

Ingredients

• 2 acorn squash – halved and seeded
• 1 head of garlic
• 2 tablespoons grapeseed oil
• 1 yellow onion - diced

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Place the squash halves, cut side down in a glass baking dish. Add enough water to the dish to cover half of the squash, and place in the oven. Also add in the oven a head of garlic wrapped in a good piece of aluminum foil and place directly on the oven rack. Roast the garlic and squash until tender, for about 1 hour. Allow to cool before handling.

In a skillet, heat the grapeseed oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion and sauté until tender, for about 6 minutes.

Scoop the cooled acorn squash flesh into a large bowl and mash until smooth. Unwrap the garlic and squeeze the roasted garlic flesh into the squash and add the sautéed onion. Combine well, season with salt to taste.

Maple-Butternut Squash

I was fortunate enough to make this dish out of home-grown ingredients from my friends and neighbors. Recipe slightly modified from here: link

Ingredients

• 6 tablespoons of your favorite “butter”
• 1 – 3 pound butternut squash – peeled, seeded, and cubed
• 1 ¼ cup chicken broth
• 1/3 cup pure maple syrup
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme – minced
• 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
• ¼ teaspoon fresh black pepper

Directions

Melt “butter” in a large deep skilled over medium-high heat. Add squash and sauté for 1 minute until coated. Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to medium, and cook until squash is almost tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, temporarily transfer the squash to a large bowl. Boil down the liquid in the skillet until thickened, about 3 to 4 minutes or until volume is reduced to half. Return squash to skillet and continue to cook until tender, stirring occasionally, for an additional 3 to 4 minutes.