Who doesn’t love butternut squash? It’s a fall classic. But, ever feel like you want to do something different with it beyond soup and roasted squash?
Enter this Persian-style Hassleback Butternut Squash with Orange Honey Luster Sauce! It’s really quite easy for such a show-stopping presentation. A quick par-roast helps to soften it for easier slicing, then it goes back in the oven basted with a gorgeous luster sauce of orange, honey and thyme.
You won’t find a prettier fall dish. Roast this up, snap a photo and tag me on IG @happyeathealthy.
Happy eating!
~Monique
Persian-style Hasselback Butternut Squash with Orange Honey Luster Sauce
1 butternut squash
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon smoky paprika
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
Orange Honey Luster Sauce
2 tablespoons ghee (or grass-fed butter)
juice of half an orange
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
¼ cup honey (a dark honey works great here, or you can sub in part molasses)
a few sprigs of thyme (or try sage!)
½ tsp cinnamon
Toppings:
¼ cup mixed roasted nuts (like hazelnuts, walnuts or pecans) or seeds (like pepitas)
Pomegranate seeds
Arugula
Goat cheese and/or Labneh
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Cut the butternut pumpkin in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds and pulp with a spoon and peel the skin with a vegetable peeler.
Brush both halves with oil on both sides and season with smoked paprika, salt and pepper.
Place the butternut squash, cut side down on an oven-proof pan and roast for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly.
Make the honey sauce while the squash is roasting: Stir together the ghee honey, orange juice, cinnamon, cider vinegar & thyme leaves in a small pan. Simmer on the lowest setting just to reduce a bit (it should become thicker). I let mine simmer until the squash comes out of the oven.
Slice the squash hasselback style: Place a squash half on a cutting board between two wooden skewers or chopsticks. Do not cut all the way through, the wooden sticks should prevent you from doing this. Make as many vertical slices along the length of the squash as you can. Place the cut squash back in the pan and repeat with the second half.
Brush the squash with the Orange Honey Sauce. Add enough of the luster sauce to allow it to drip between the slots. Roast again for 20-40 minutes, brushing once or twice more with the honey sauce, reserving a few tablespoons of the sauce for the final platter. The squash should be soft but still have some texture to it still.
Remove from the oven and garnish with the arugula, chopped nuts, pomegranate seeds, and a sprinkling of cheese or a few spoonfuls of labneh and a sprinkling of flaked salt. Cut up the remaining orange half and add to the platter. Drizzle the remaining Orange Honey Luster Sauce over everything.
