Last week I met some friends for dinner at an Italian restaurant in San Francisco. We ordered a salad appetizer to share, which was topped with squash cooked in brown butter. The salad was good, but honestly, I could have eaten a pound of that brown butter squash for dinner and been happy.
Since squash pretty much screams autumn, I decided brown butter squash would make for a great Thanksgiving side dish. It’s easy, it’s wholesome, it’s comforting. And that bit of sage sprinkled in? That seals the Thanksgiving deal. I don’t know about you, but all I have to do is smell a bit of sage and I’m immediately transported to Thanksgivings past.
Owen and I are eating the squash that is pictured for lunch today. He’s gobbling it up. Pun intended. In fact, I’m going to see how many times I can use the word gobble before Thanksgiving arrives…get ready!
- 1 acorn squash (or any kind of winter squash you like), peeled, cored and cut into small cubes (about ½”³ in size) – my acorn squash yielded about 4 cups of cubed squash
- 4 tablespoons butter
- ½ teaspoon dried sage
- salt & pepper
- Heat a medium-large-ish skillet over medium heat. Add butter and whisk until butter browns. Here’s what will happen”¦the butter will melt, then it will start to bubble, then it will really start to bubble and foam, then that bubbling and foaming will stop (although there will still be residual bubbles) and THEN the butter will brown. Take it off the heat at this point – you don’t want it to burn. This whole process takes about 5 minutes.
- Whisk in the sage, then add the cubed squash to the pan and toss to coat in the butter. Return the pan to the heat, heat the pan back up to medium, then turn the heat down to medium-low, cover the pan and cook until the squash is soft. This will probably take about 5-10 minutes. Once it’s the consistency you want it, take the lid off, sprinkle with salt & pepper to taste, carefully stir and flip the squash to coat, let cook 1-2 more minutes, then transfer to serving dish. Be sure to pour all that yummy browned, seasoned butter over the squash because, darn, that is some good butter.
- Probably about 4-6 servings if used as a side dish. Feel free to use more squash, just up the amount of butter and spice accordingly!
Hi! My name is Jane Maynard and you've landed yourself on my blog, This Week for Dinner™. Every Sunday I share a weekly menu...and count on you to share yours! You'll also find other deliciousness that I hope you'll enjoy!
i love baked squash! what a great idea to put it on a salad. i’m doing it this weekend.
This looks so yummy! I love butternut squash but never ever make it on my own. Can’t wait to add this to my thanksgiving menu. I may have to make it soon just to make sure I can pull it off perfectly.
I’m starting to believe all butter should be browned. Such a simple step that I’m sure makes this squash divine.
Looks so tasty. I like the idea of using brown butter to dress it up again. Though I love winter squash literally every way it is cooked!
What else was in the salad? My boys love butternut squash. Can’t wait to try the recipe.
that’s a good question? let me think for a moment…I know there was frisee and greens and stuff, I believe feta cheese that was creamy as can be, probably some sort of nut. I’m going to go ask allison who ate it as well!
hold the phone! there weren’t nuts, but there WERE pomegranate seeds!
Mmmm, glorious! I love butternut squash. This sounds amazing.
I wish I could remember what was in the salad, but I do *think* I remember vinegar in there! Am I totally off base? There were pomegranate seeds, which is part of the reason I ordered it!