Trader Joe's Dinner: Butternut Squash

October 30, 2006

Patient readers will recall that I grew up a very picky eater. You know how food and health reports today say that a healthy plate is one that is as colorful as possible? Dark greens, light greens, oranges, yellows, red, etc? Well, my childhood plate was big on the earthtones -- brown meat and white potatoes. Every once in awhile I'd allow some color in the form of corn or artichokes, but that was the extent of my vegetables.

In recent years not only has my plate become and more colorful, but I've also managed to overcome several serious food foibles. Brussels sprouts? Love 'em. Cauliflower? Crave it. Edamame? Edayummy! Regardless, it won't surprise you to know that I've never been much of a squash fan, but last autumn Jen wrote a piece about butternut squash that I couldn't get out of my mind and, for some unfathomable reason, I let the entire year go by without acting on my growing craving.

However, as soon as autumn's chill fingers began slipping around the city's throat, and the leaves crisped on naked branches before falling scratchily to the cold cement, my cravings began anew. As I mentioned before, my hectic lifestyle has left me feeling Food Lazy and curiously resistant to spending too much time in the kitchen when I should be pounding away at my keyboard. However, when I discovered Trader Joe's was packaging pre-cubed butternut squash, all ready for the cooking, I flashed into action.

Already fairly sweet, butternut squash gets even sweeter when cooked and many people like to accent that sweetness with pumpkin pie-ish things like cinnamon, sugar, and nutmeg. But see, I'm not the biggest fan of overly sweet things on my savory dinner plate, so I had a completely different plan in mind.

I tossed the squash with vegetable oil, curry powder, salt, pepper, and a pinch of my father-in-law's homemade red pepper flakes (code name: Powdered Fire). Then, I set the bright orange cubes a-roasting at 400° in a covered dish and cooked them until they got fairly soft and squidgy. Finally, I pulled the pan and tossed in some minced garlic and thyme and gave it all a quick stir.

This particular cooking method managed to turn the bright orange cubes into a toasted orange puree, so I decided to use the squash as a pasta sauce. No Cuisinart was even needed, I just threw in some cooked walnut and gorgonzola tortellini (fresh, from Trader Joe's) and tossed to coat. After plating, I grated delicate white threads of Pecorino Romano over the pile of pasta and served.

Butternut Squash-Tossed Pasta with Thyme and Pecorino Romano

1 16-oz package Trader Joe's cubed butternut squash
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon curry powder
Pinch of red pepper flakes
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
2 minced garlic cloves
1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme
8 oz cooked Trader Joe's Gorgonzola-Walnut Tortellini
1 tablespoon grated Pecorino Romano

Preheat the oven to 400°.

Dump the butternut squash in an ovenproof dish and add the vegetable oil, curry powder, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Toss to fully coat the squash with the oil and seasonings.

Cover the dish and roast until very soft, about 45-50 minutes. Uncover the dish for the last 10 minutes of the roasting process to bring out a nice, toasty color in the squash.

While the squash is still hot, add the garlic and thyme and stir to combine. Add the cooked pasta and toss gently until fully coated. Garnish with the grated Pecorino Romano.

On another occasion, I added the minced garlic but instead of thyme, I went with grated ginger. After I tossed this rendition with fresh gnocchi, I garnished with sliced scallions and a drizzle of crème fraîche.

Butternut Squash-Tossed Pasta with Ginger and Scallions

1 16-oz package Trader Joe's cubed butternut squash
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon curry powder
Pinch of red pepper flakes
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
2 minced garlic cloves
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
8 oz. cooked gnocchi or penne
2 teaspoons crème fraîche
4 thinly-sliced scallions, white and pale green parts only

Preheat the oven to 400°.

Dump the butternut squash in an ovenproof dish and add the vegetable oil, curry powder, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Toss to fully coat the squash with the oil and seasonings.

Cover the dish and roast until very soft, about 45-50 minutes. Uncover the dish for the last 10 minutes of the roasting process to bring out a nice, toasty color in the squash.

While the squash is still hot, add the garlic and ginger and stir to combine. Add the cooked pasta and toss gently until fully coated. Drizzle the crème fraîche over the pasta and garnish with the scallions.

What I found most amazing about this supremely quick dish was how the squash turns into a rich and velvety mess when there's barely any oil added.

We ate it three times last week.

I think I need more.