Roasting vegetables is my absolute new favorite thing. It's just so easy. Easy AND delicious: such a winning combination. The ingredients of my roasted butternut squash, brussels sprouts, and onion recipe may seem simple or even plain, but they all work together to create something very specific.
Pre-heating the pan along with the oven gives all of the veggies lovely, caramelized sides. A splash of maple syrup, usually on my list of Things I Do Not Like due to its often overpowering flavor, gives a nice, light glaze and further helps along the caramelization process without screaming PANCAKES. A little bit of thyme calms down the natural sugars of the maple syrup and butternut squash, and a little salt balances it all out.
Oh yeah, and another thing I love about this dish. It's so so so easy to cheat. Yeah, I said it: cheat. Listen people, I am busy. You are too, right? Sometimes I just don't feel like breaking down an entire butternut squash. It's not that it's difficult; it's that I just don't feel like it. So yeah, I cheat. I have definitely done this with {gasp} frozen butternut squash cubes, but my favorite is to use the precut ones in the produce department that are fresh. With that one shortcut, this dish can be in the oven within 5 minutes of deciding to make it, then you can sit back and watch some tv while the oven does all the hard work.
Roasted Butternut Squash, Brussels Sprouts, & Onion
Ingredients
- 1 lb brussels sprouts trimmed, halved
- 1 lb butternut squash chopped into ½" cubes
- 1 red onion cut in half, and each half cut into 6 chunks
- 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoon real maple syrup
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- Place the empty roasting pan in the oven. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Once the oven is preheated, remove the pan from the oven, and put the vegetables on the pan. Top them with the other ingredients ( olive oil, maple syrup, thyme, salt, pepper ), and toss to coat. Careful, remember that pan is HOT!
- Roast for 18 minutes. Flip the vegetables over and give them a good stir around the pan.
- Roast for another 18 minutes, or until the butternut squash is tender. You might need an extra 5 minutes here if you started from frozen squash.
I want to prep this dish early for a dinner party tomorrow night. Could I put the oil, syrup, and seasoning on the veggie pieces in a bowl in the fridge for a couple hours beforehand?
Absolutely!
Can I cook then freeze this recipe? once ready to eat cook at 350 for about 30 mins? I don;t like over cooking vegetables.
Unfortunately, I wouldn't recommend freezing it, as the brussels sprouts would lose their texture. Perhaps substituting green beans for the sprouts or something else more freezer-friendly would allow the recipe to be frozen, but I haven't experimented with that so I can't be sure.
What are some tips on using fresh butter squash? Do you pre-cook it first?
I often buy the prepared raw ( chopped ) squash, but if you are starting with a whole one, you may cut it in half, peel off the skin with a veggie peeler, and then chop it up. No need to precook!
Yum! This sounds delicious. Definitely going to have to make this soon. And I'm all for cheating, especially if it saves some time during the busy work week. 😉
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Thank you!!