Julia Child is reported to have said, "I was 32 when I started cooking; up until then, I just ate." For me, I was 30. While I have always loved food, cooking was something I feared, disliked, and avoided until motherhood compelled me to overcome my feelings and, in spite of myself, I found I began to enjoy trying new recipes, creating tasty meals, and sharing them with others. These are the adventures of my learning to love something that overwhelmed and intimidated me for far too long. I hope you will enjoy (and perhaps benefit from) the tales of a reluctant cook!

Thursday, August 28, 2014

The Verdict: Balsamic-Roasted Kabocha Squash- Courtesy of Healthy in a Hurry (originally posted May 14, 2014)


I meant to make this a few weeks ago and FINALLY got around to it the other night, as we were throwing together a last-minute meal.

This recipe comes courtesy of Healthy in a Hurry and was quite easy and quite good. We didn’t do everything exactly as written in the recipe, but it still came out delicious and was healthy to boot!
This recipe proves there’s no need to slather squash with butter, sugar, or maple syrup (though, admittedly, that is quite yummy in the tummy). Roasting brings out the sweetness, and balsamic vinegar adds a nice, complementary tang.
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Ingredients:
1 Kabocha Squash, about 2.5 lbs (we substituted an Acorn Squash because I didn’t want to go store hopping to find a Kabocha)
Olive Oil, 2 T
Sea Salt, 1/4 t
Freshly Ground Pepper
Balsamic Vinegar, 2 T

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Using a large chef’s knife, cut squash in half lengthwise. Scoop out seeds and slice flesh crosswise into wedges 1/2-3/4 in thick. Trim peel from each wedge (we actually like the peel in our house, so we kept it).
Put squash on baking pan, drizzle with evoo, and toss to coat. Arrange in single layer. Sprinkle with salt and a few grindings of pepper. Roast until tender when pierced, stirring twice to brown squash evenly, 15-18 minutes.
Drizzle squash with vinegar, return to oven, and continue roasting until vinegar has evaporated, about 3 minutes longer. Let cool slightly, then serve right away.

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