Cozy up to fall with this delicious squash dish
Leaf-peeping season is upon us. To celebrate fall foliage and all of the hygge this time of year transmits to our collective moods, I present a roasted honeynut squash dish. It is topped off with a cashew crumble, farmer cheese, and a pomegranate gastrique.
Honeynut squash is a hybrid between butternut and buttercup squash. Dan Barber, chef and owner of Blue Hill in Greenwich Village and at Stone Barns in Upstate, N.Y., is credited with assisting a professor at Cornell University in the cultivation of this somewhat still newish hybrid squash that condenses all the good things in squash into one.
I remember being interviewed by Barber himself in 2013, when I was deciding to leave my server job at Tertulia, where I had been for almost three years. I didn’t understand who he was, or that the restaurant I was interviewing for—Blue Hill—was a big deal at the time. I took it very lightly and didn’t prepare much for that interview. (Looking back, I can only imagine if by then he had decided not to bother with interviewing anyone himself anymore. I understand now why I didn’t get offered the job.)
Fast-forward a few short years later, I saw him on the Netflix show “Chef’s Table” and laughed at myself for being so awkward and mindless in that interview. It was in the episode where Barber was featured that I learned about the honeynut squash. Since then, everytime I see that cute, dusty-looking tiny gourd, I truly cannot help myself but buy it.
A pomegranate gastrique adds variety and a playfulness to the plate with pops of juicy pomegranate seeds sprinkled throughout. Here’s a suggestion: Use already seeded pomegranate seeds and pomegranate juice because ain’t nobody got time for that.
Cashew crumble will confuse you into thinking this dish is a dessert, but the crumbly texture adds a layer of nuttiness to it.
Let the farmer cheese sit out at the start so it is at room temperature by the time you assemble your meal. You can also substitute a goat’s or sheep’s milk cheese if your heart desires.
Pour your favorite beverage. If it’s wine, may I recommend a sharp Chablis? If it’s nonalcoholic, may I recommend a lime or lemon Spindrift?
As you warm up your oven, go ahead and play your favorite Spotify playlist or break out your Ella Fitzgerald records, because you want to be present for the various steps that go into making this dish.
Honeynut Squash with Cashew Crumble, Farmer Cheese, and Pomegranate Gastrique
Yields 4
Ingredients for the honeynut squash
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
4 honeynut squash, halved, seeded, scored
Salt & pepper, to taste
Instructions for the honeynut squash
Preheat the oven to 405 degrees Fahrenheit. Drizzle olive oil over the honeynut squash halves. Season with salt and pepper. Roast cut side up in the oven for 35 –40 minutes. Set aside.
Ingredients for the cashew crumble (yields 2 cups)
1 cup whole unroasted, unsalted cashews
⅓ cup light-brown sugar, packed
¼ cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp Maldon flaky sea salt (or ½ tsp regular salt)
4 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into small chunks
Instructions for the cashew crumble
Toast the cashews on a sheet tray in a 350 degree Fahrenheit oven for 4–5 minutes, or until golden brown.
Place toasted cashews in a food processor and pulse a few times until crumbly. Add the sugar, flour, and salt. Pulse again until combined.
Add butter. Pulse until combined. Transfer mixture to a sheet tray and spread the crumble evenly. Toast until golden brown, approximately 8 minutes. Let cool until ready to use. Save leftover cashew crumble for ice cream or oatmeal topping. Use within 5 days.
Ingredients for the pomegranate gastrique
4 tbsp unsalted butter
1 cup pomegranate juice
2 tbsp rice wine vinegar
3 tbsp light-brown sugar
Pomegranate seeds, as garnish
Instructions for the pomegranate gastrique
Melt butter in a small nonstick skillet or small saucepan on medium heat.
Add the pomegranate juice, rice wine vinegar, and sugar. Stir until sugar dissolves.
Reduce until liquid is syrupy, approximately 8 minutes. Remove from heat and let sit until ready to use.
Assembly
Place two halves of honey squash side by side on a serving plate. Place an odd number (three or five) of small dollops of farmer cheese on and around the squash. Using a spoon, drizzle some of the pomegranate gastrique over the squash and another spoonful in a circle around the honeynut squash. Top liberally with cashew crumble and pomegranate seeds. Enjoy!
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