This winter has been kind of insane. From our family in New England experiencing colder-than-the-North-Pole temperatures to rain deluges in California, I think we’re all just holding on for dear life (as well as ski poles). While extreme weather is no bueno, I do love winter and colder weather. Especially when it comes to cooking. And what is one of the coziest foods out there? Butternut squash. Truly one of my favorite vegetables, I’ll take it in any form and, if it’s on a menu, I’m ordering it. 

Case in point: I once had a butternut squash dish at a restaurant in San Francisco that was simply prepared in brown butter. The squash was divine and one I will never forget. As I was thinking of ways to use squash other than soup, that dish came to mind and it seemed like the perfect springboard for gnocchi. Gnocchi just goes with the richness of brown butter and squash. 

This brown butter gnocchi would make for a delicious side dish or a full vegetarian meal. The best part is you only need one skillet to cook the entire thing. It really is quick and easy to prepare – you’ll have dinner on the table in less than 30 minutes. Bonus: your house will smell like heaven!

And, in case you’re wondering, my kids enjoyed this gnocchi recipe as much as we did. 

Quick question before I hand over the recipe: Does anyone have a good brand for gluten-free gnocchi that you like? Or a recipe that is good? Please share in the comments, I’m desperate to enjoy this once again with the rest of my family. Thank you!

One-Skillet Brown Butter Gnocchi with Butternut Squash

 

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Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

20 mins

Total time

40 mins

 

Serves 2 for dinner, 4 as a side dish

Author: Jane Maynard

Serves: 2

Ingredients

• 2 cups butternut squash, peeled and cubed into ½” pieces
• 4 tablespoons salted butter
• 16-ounce package frozen gnocchi
• 2 tablespoons sliced shallots
• ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
• ¼ teaspoon dried sage
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 packed cup roughly chopped fresh spinach

Instructions

1. Prep squash and set aside, making sure squash pieces are cut uniform in size to ½” cubes.
2. In a deep 12-inch skillet, heat butter over medium heat. Let butter cook for about 5 minutes until it is browned. Butter will bubble and foam, then bubbles will subside at about the same time that the butter is browned. Stir regularly during the cooking process to avoid scorching.
3. Once butter is browned, add squash, cover pan and cook for 7 minutes, stirring once or twice during the cook time.
4. While squash is cooking, slice the shallots. After squash has cooked for 7 minutes, add the frozen gnocchi, shallots, thyme, sage, pepper, salt. Push the garlic clove through a garlic press and add to the pan. Stir well, cover and cook for 7 more minutes, stirring a few times during the cook time.
5. While everything is cooking, roughly chop the spinach and set aside.
6. During the last minute of the cook time, remove the lid and add the fresh spinach, cooking and stirring until spinach is wilted, about 1 minute.
7. Serve immediately. Sprinkle with fresh Parmesan cheese if desired.

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It’s a good thing my mother-in-law came to visit last week because it actually gave me some food to write about! It’s been great being able to post about the delicious food she made for us…and so much of it is perfect for Thanksgiving, so it’s great timing!

Today I have a nice, simple side dish for you that would be perfect right along with some turkey and stuffing, although we had it with filet mignon and that was pretty perfect, too. Pat ate some butternut squash at Whole Foods once that she loved, so she went home and recreated it. It is simple, easy and delicious. Just the kind of recipe you need for that busy Thanksgiving day.

Pat's Butternut Squash

 

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From my mother-in-law Pat Maynard

Author: Jane Maynard

Recipe type: Side Dish, Thanksgiving

Ingredients

• 1 medium-sized butternut squash, peeled and cut into ~1”³ squares
• One small onion, cut into thin slices
• 1-2 Tablespoons butter
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil.
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 3 heaping Tablespoons dried cranberries

Instructions

1. In a large pot, cook onions in butter and olive oil until soft over mediumish heat. Add sugar towards the end to sweeten/caramelize the onions. Add dried cranberries. Stir with onions about 1 minute or till softened a bit. Put the butternut squash into the pot with the onion mixture. Cover and steam/cook slowly over low-medium heat until squash is nice and tender (but not moist because Pat can’t stand that word and this is her recipe). Stir gently and add a pat of butter if needed before serving.

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Happy St. Patrick’s Day, everyone! Every year I try to plan a fantastic green feast. And this year I still don’t know what I’m doing! However, I just took a gander at what we ate last year, and it was great inspiration. I think we’ll have green chicken piccata, green mashed potatoes (potatoes from our CSA bag) and baby broccoli (also from our CSA bag). I’m sad I didn’t get a corned beef to cook, but maybe we can get one on sale tomorrow and enjoy it a few days late!

I do have a good non-green recipe to share with you today, however. Last week I was planning to make butternut squash soup, since I had ordered butternut squash with my CSA bag. When it arrived, I got two baby butternut squashes. While super cute, they weren’t going to provide quite enough squash for the recipe. However, I had three leeks in the bag and a beautiful head of cauliflower, so I made some modifications. The result – a deliciously buttery soup with great flavor!

Butternut Squash Cauliflower Leek Soup...my first CSA creation!

 

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A deliciously buttery soup with great flavor!

Author: Jane Maynard

Recipe type: Main Dish, Soup

Ingredients

• 2 small butternut squashes (or the equivalent amount”¦probably about 2 pounds or so)
• 3 leeks, green tops cut off, and leeks cleaned and chopped into 1-inch pieces
• ½ head cauliflower
• 2 T butter
• about a teaspoon ground ginger
• 5 cups chicken stock
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Half butternut squash and roast in the oven until easily pierced with a knife, 45-60 minutes. Steam cauliflower until cooked but not mushy.
2. Melt butter in large soup pan. Saute leeks in butter 5-10 minutes, until soft. Add ginger and let cook a minute or two more. Add broth and bring to a boil. Carefully add cauliflower and scoop out the butternut squash from the skins and add to the pot as well. Reduce heat to low and simmer 20-30 minutes.
3. Carefully blend soup in batches until it is all smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Eat!

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It is pouring rain today, which means two things. First, I am in heaven. Second, it’s time for a cozy bowl of soup.

I know several of you are chomping at the bit for my Broccoli Cheese Soup recipe. The recipe is coming this week, I promise. I just need to take a picture. Until then, I hope my most favorite soup recipe EVER will suffice.

Butternut Squash Soup

 

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A cozy delicious soup! From my friend Sarah Covert, with my commentary in italics

Author: Jane Maynard

Recipe type: Main Dish, Soup

Ingredients

• Soup:
• 1 large butternut squash, about 3.5 lbs.
• 1 large leek
• 2 T unsalted butter
• 4 tsp. grated fresh ginger (you can use ground ginger – I think about 1 tsp should do it)
• 5-6 cups chicken stock
• Salt
• Freshly ground pepper (this last time I used fresh ground black pepper and 2 shakes of cayenne)
• Peanuts:
• (optional garnish that I never make b/c I don’t like peanuts”¦but those who do love these spiced peanuts on top)
• 1 1/12 C roasted peanuts (not dry-roasted)
• 2 T peanut oil
• 1½ t. ground ginger
• 1 T finely chopped garlic
• 2 t. finely chopped fresh cilantro
• ½ tsp. Chinese five-spice powder (in bulk at Henry’s)
• ¼ t. cayenne pepper

Instructions

1. I roast the squash, cut in pieces & wrapped in foil, in my oven at 375 for 40-60 mins. That said, here’s what the recipe tells you to do. With a large heavy knife, cut the squash in half through the stem and discard the seeds. Brush the cut sides with olive oil. Grill, cut sides down, indirectly over medium heat until the skin can be easily pierced with the tip of a sharp knife, about 1 hour. Remove the squash from the grill and cool”¦ with a large spoon, scoop the flesh from the squash and discard the skin.
2. Cut off most of the tough green top from the leek. Cut the leek lengthwise and wash under cold running water to remove any dirt trapped. Cut crosswise into ½-inch pieces.
3. In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, melt the butter. Add leek and ginger and cook, stirring occasionally, until the looks are tender, about 5 minutes. Add 5 cups of the chicken stock. Bring to a boil and carefully add the squash. Recude the heat to very low and cook, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. Puree the soup, in batches in a blender. Return soup to saucepan. If it seems thick, use remain stock as needed. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve warm, garnished with peanuts if desired.
4. For the peanuts: In a small bowl, combine the peanuts, peanut oil, ground ginger, garlic, cilantro, five-spice powder and cayenne. Toss well to coat the peanuts evenly, then transfer to large sheet of aluminum foil. pull the corners of the foil together and close the pouch. place the pouch over indirect medium heat for 5 minutes. Carefully remove pouch and allow to cool.

3.2.2265

Have you met Katie from goodLife {eats}? I have, and she’s lovely. And she has a delicious food blog. Thanks to her I have a new favorite recipe…Butternut Squash Risotto! It was so good Cate told me to make it every day. Coming from a 4-year-old, that says a lot. And in this case, the 4-year-old actually knows what she is talking about.

Chicken & Butternut Squash Risotto

 

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Adapted from Katie Goodman at goodLife {eats}, who in turn adapted it from Rachael Ray

Author: Jane Maynard

Recipe type: Main Dish, Rice, Poultry

Ingredients

• 1½ cups roasted butternut squash (if you can find a 12 oz can of squash, go ahead and use that!)
• 1 chicken breast, seasoned with salt & pepper, cooked (I sauteed in olive oil) then cut or shredded into bitesized pieces
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup water
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ½ onion, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced (Jane note: I used my garlic press)
• 2 cups arborio rice
• 1 cup dry white wine
• Dash nutmeg
• Salt and pepper
• 1 cup grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese
• 2 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces
• Heaping teaspoon of fresh thyme leaves
• ½ C water (may not need)

Instructions

1. Cut up a butternut squash into 8 pieces. Wrap in foil and roast in 375 degree oven for about 45 minutes, or until very soft. Scoop flesh out of the skins. One squash will yield more than 1½ C, so save the rest for another recipe or freeze for later. Have the squash and cooked chicken breast ready to go before proceeding with the next steps.
2. In a large saucepan, bring the chicken broth and 1 cup water to a boil over medium-high heat, then turn the heat to low.
3. In a large skillet, heat the oil, 2 turns of the pan, over medium-high heat. When the oil is rippling, add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 2 minutes. Add the rice and toast (and stir occasionally) for 3 minutes. Stir in the wine and cook, stirring occasionally, until mostly evaporated, 2 to 3 minutes.
4. Add 2 ladles of the warm chicken broth to the rice and stir until the liquid evaporates. Add the chicken stock, 2 ladles at a time, stirring almost constantly and waiting for the stock to be absorbed before adding more. This process should take about 20 minutes. (I ended up having to add an additional ½ C water at the end to get the rice soft enough. If you need to add much more than ½ C, I would use broth as opposed to water to maintain flavor.)
5. During the last 3 minutes of cooking, stir in the squash; season with nutmeg, thyme, salt and pepper to taste. During the last minute of cooking, stir in the cheese and butter then add the cooked chicken.
6. You can leave the chicken out to make a vegetarian dish”¦it still tastes great!

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