Roasted Squash with Brown Butter and Sage

Crisp breezes, apple cider and wool sweaters, autumn has finally arrived! October is my favorite month, it's when the final harvest is made of apples and myriad squash, it's when we all huddle a bit closer to keep ourselves warm and it's when the pace of life slows down just a tad so we can all savor the moment. 

Beautiful Amish lad at the West Chester Farmer's Market



Kabocha squash
The bounty of squash currently at the farmer's market is screaming for experimentation in the kitchen. We picked up a kabocha and I found a simple recipe on Williams Sonoma's website, so simple that I never intended to write about it. After all, how many times have you seen oven-roasted squash with butter and sage? But there was something absolutely sensational about this bowl of roasted squash. The nutty browned butter and earthy sage seemed to contrast and draw sweet caramel flavors from the roasted squash, and the delicate crispy sage leaves fried in butter lent a nice contrast to the dense starchiness of the kabocha. Interestingly the sweet buttery flavors reminded me of caramel popcorn.




The original recipe calls for butternut squash, but other squash or root vegetables such as carrots and parsnips can easily be substituted.

Roasted Squash with Brown Butter and Sage
From Williams Sonoma
Ingredients
  • 1 kabocha or butternut squash (about 3 1/4 lbs.) 
  • 1 Tablespoon olive oil 
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper 
  • 2 Tablespoon unsalted butter 
  • 24 leaves fresh sage 
Method
  1. Preheat an oven to 425°F. Using a sturdy vegetable peeler, peel the squash. Using a large, sharp knife, cut the squash crosswise where the bulbous part meets the narrower part, and trim off the blossom and stem ends. Cut the bulbous part in half vertically and scrape out and discard the seeds and fibers. Cut all of the squash into 1-inch chunks. Spread the pieces on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with the oil and toss with your hands to coat. Season with salt and pepper. 
  2. Roast for 15 minutes. Stir the squash and continue roasting until tender and browned, 10 to 15 minutes more. Remove from the oven. 
  3. In a small frying pan, melt the butter over medium heat until the foam subsides. Add the sage and cook just until the butter turns a light hazelnut brown and the sage is crisp, about 30 seconds. Immediately pour the brown butter and sage over the squash on the baking sheet and toss to coat. Transfer to a warmed serving bowl and serve. 
Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Comfort Food, by Rick Rodgers (Oxmoor House, 2009).

11 comments:

  1. I can get over how gorgeous that kabocha squash is. I don't think I've seen one in our market. I'll keep my eye out now.

    Alex is adorable with the bouquet of sage. Great fall recipe Christine and beautifully presented.
    Sam

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  2. I have tried to fry sage in butter and did some pumpkin raviolis once with this sauce and loved it! Great recipe Christine!

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  3. Alex is adorable:) I love onesies..so cute..the darling Amish boy is cute too..
    AND the squash and sage do look wonderful..probably why there are many ravioli recipes of this :)

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  4. Wonderful recipe, Christine. That squash is very similar to the one we grow here. I like that it has sage, I must taste this combination, soon.
    Alex is adorable :)

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  5. What lovely photos dear Christine and Alex is sooo cute! I love him!
    xo

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  6. YUM! I cannot wait to try this one. I made squash the other day and gave a little to Mac, who hated it. I'm just not sure he's ready for food yet! :)

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  7. I love eating squash in the fall and winter! I even froze some sage leaves before the first freeze so I'm ready to go ;)

    Lovely photos, Christine, and it's always heart-warming to see little Alex.

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  8. excellent recipe, but it's your photographs that have me excited---they just vibrate with autumn color all over the page. love it!

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  9. What a gorgeous pile of winter squashes at the market! All I want to do right now is roast pumpkin and squash. The flavors of brown butter and sage are so perfect with it.

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  10. Oh I can't get over those delicious little legs, Oh how I miss those bubby legs!

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  11. Love. I would happily eat a big bowl of this.

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