Winter Harvest Dinner

Friday, February 03, 2012

Two weeks into my winter CSA share, I found myself confronting bags of turnips and carrots in my fridge, not to mention the onions, potatoes, and garlic in the pantry—plus a chubby buttercup squash on the kitchen counter. Possibilities were endless, but I decided to start out simply roasting the veggies while perusing cookbooks in search of a more creative way to use the squash.

Roasted Winter Veggies

a few of each: turnips, small yukon gold potatoes, and carrots, all peeled and chopped into bite-size pieces (well, I only peeled the turnips, it’s personal preference)
a garlic clove or two or three
half of a sweet onion, cut into chunks
small bunch of fresh herbs—I used rosemary, sage, and thyme scavenged from an overgrown neighborhood garden
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar (optional)
salt and black pepper to taste

Toss veggies with oil in a shallow baking pan, add herbs, and bake at 375F for approximately 45 minutes until veggies have softened (can be pierced by a fork) but aren’t mushy. I added a dash of balsamic vinegar about halfway into the cooking time just to add a little extra flavor.

While my veggies roasted, I peeled and chopped the squash and then got right to work on this:

Mole-Inspired Butternut Squash and Black Beans

Not authentic in the least, the mole-ish sauce inspired by Chili-Chocolate Mole in Veganonomicon by Isa Chandra Moskowitz & Terry Hope Romero adds a wonderful complexity to the ordinary mixture of squash and beans.

3-4 cups black beans (I soaked mine overnight and cooked them right beforehand)
1 buttercup squash, peeled, seeded (save the seeds for roasting!) and cubed

for the sauce:

¼ c sliced almonds
2 T sesame seeds
2 tsp anise seeds
2-3 tsp ancho chili powder
1 tsp red chili powder
2 tsp ground cinnamon
¼  tsp ground allspice
1 T brown sugar (optional)
1T cocoa powder (melted dark chocolate would be better if you have it)
2 tsp coffee granules (optional)
2 tsp molasses (optional)
3-4 garlic cloves, chopped
small onion, diced
1 T olive oil
1 can diced tomatoes

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and toast the almonds, sesame seeds, and anise seeds until fragrant, about 2-3 minutes . Remove from pan and set aside. Saute garlic and onions in olive oil until soft, then begin to add the spices, sugar, coffee, and cocoa powder, stirring often for several minutes. Add the diced tomatoes and molasses, and when bubbles form, reduce heat and simmer 5-10 minutes, adding a little extra water or vegetable broth if the sauce seems too thick. Then combine the sauce, black beans, and squash in a casserole dish and bake until squash is tender. Top with roasted squash seeds and serve.