We often focus on the main dish as we are planning out our meals, the extras are just as important. In my former processed food kitchen I would grab a bag of instant rice, maybe a can of some kind of veggie or fruit and call it a day. No more!! Now I pick fresh real food sides and have never looked back.
With Fall here it is time to embrace the root vegetables that are in such abundance and have staying power for storage. The vegetable of choice is Sweet Potato & Butternut Squash. The sweet potato is so very easy to love, the squash on the other hand not so much. I will admit I once was a squash hater, but now I am reformed. This dish is a keeper!
The BEST part is you can use at Breakfast or Lunch as well. I reheat the mixture and place some over easy eggs on top for a darn good start to my day. Lunch, add to a salad for a little extra something! The possibilities are endless. So without further adieu here is the simple recipe. ENJOY!
Ingredients:
- 1 Butternut Squash: peeled & diced
- 1 large Sweet Potato: peeled & diced
- 1/4 Onion finely diced
- 3 Garlic Cloves: peeled & pressed
- 1 tsp fresh rosemary: finely chopped
- 1/2 tsp thyme: finely chopped
- Salt & Pepper
- 1/8 Cayenne Powder
- 2 Tbsp Avocado Oil
- 1 tbsp Real Butter ( Kerigold my favorite)
Direction:
Peel and Diced both sweet potato & butternut squash. I suggest cut them both in have to more control when cutting and peeling. When peeling the butternut you will find it with a tough skin so you will need to use a knife to remove the skin. Cut in the squash in half, then stand on end. Then in a smooth motion take the knife from the top and slice off the skin. You will not be finely dicing the vegetables, but leaving in 1-2 inch chunks. Please no need for perfection here but try to achieve the same size for even cooking.
Place all the cut squash/potato on a 9x13 pan ( I use my Pampered Chef Stoneware) Then add the diced onion, rosemary, thyme, garlic and cover in salt & pepper (about 1 tsp of both). Then add 1/8 of tsp of cayenne or more if you really want to kick it up! Cover in oil then mix all together on the pan till everything is coated. Once coated layout the mixture out evenly on the pan. Place in a 325 oven or if baking along side a Chicken bump it up to 400. Bake for at least an hour and up to 1 1/2 hr.
Once done taste and add salt and pepper as needed and toss with 1 tbsp butter. Then Serve and ENJOY! Serves 6