Butternut Fantasy

Cooking a butternut can be daunting. I know, I know. You always pass them by because you think to yourself, “I can’t do anything with that without a chainsaw”, and the last time you talked to the neighbor with a chainsaw he had some odd things to say.

So I truly understand your deep avoidance to the butternut. It’s valid, honey. Your feelings are all bunched up behind the idea of a lot of work and low yield. When was the last time, after all, someone raved about some pile of butternut squash or a bowl of butt-soup? Well, lovelies, the time of butternut work-well-worth-it has arrived. But I am not going to try to sway you and sweeten the deal by telling you that cutting open that brick is easy. No way. No how. I am real. As real as the Texas titmouse tweeting in the tree outside my window right now. I am as real with you as your tantruming three year old in the middle of your mother-in-law’s birthday dinner at Macaroni Grill.

Put your big girl panties on (yes, guys too), pick out a fresh butternut, and don’t worry about asking to borrow a chainsaw because you are gonna cut that mama up on a day you feel pissed as a rattlesnake in a sunny creekbed tormented by human youths poking sticks at you. That’s what I’ve felt like this week, so I got out the good knife and got to hacking.

Start out by peeling the squash. Well, wait. You don’t have to actually, but I did. Copycat. It does not matter if you peel it really, the peel is edible, I was serving it to some people who may not take culinary delight in so much as an unpeeled carrot (which i have not peeled in 13 years at least)

You are going to half that squash. Take careful note that when you cut into her, she should begin to weep. This will give  you some extra satisfaction. If your squash is fresh, then the meat of it will begin to seep her sweetness in small beautiful beads as you slice.  This always gives me immeasurable pleasure and the beauty that nature has grown something that keeps you hydrated during a bleak time of year is a great feeling.  She will take care of us if we let her. Are you feeling better yet?

Remove seeds. BORING.

NOW! You are going to cut her into about 4 inch long slices. Slice as thin as you can carefully. You will then baste slices in olive oil or grapeseed oil ( I chose grapeseed oil for its higher burning temp) and some kind of southwest seasoning. I used Adam’s Southwest Rub. But you can use chili powder with a little rosemary thrown in.  I got it pretty coated in seasoning.

Lay those pieces all pretty and flat on a baking sheet and bake at 450 for about 10 to fifteen minutes, or until edges are getting dark brown to slightly black. Pull them out and you could stop there.

But I then barely barely kissed the squash with a razberry chipotle sauce. Most of these are too strong right out of the bottle, I mixed my razberry chipotle with a little water and olive oil to cut it down and be sure that I was not just tasting sauce…

I wanted to taste the Butternut Fantasy!!!

Now get to work. Oh yeah, and, if you’ve got ‘em laying around or falling from the tree outside… top with little bits of toasted pecans.