Early October is my favorite time of year, the time when the selection of local produce is the most varied and abundant. Fall is officially here, but until the first hard frost arrives, farmers markets still have a pleasantly split character: Much of the summer produce (zucchini, tomato, peppers, basil) is still available along with the potatoes, root vegetables, apples, pears and hard squashes that are an unmistakable sign of fall.
One of the first fall vegetables that I am eager to sample every year is acorn squash. Acorn squash has a sweet, moist flesh, and it also has another virtue: the skin of the squash can be eaten, as well.
At Olivea, we’ve been serving the squash as an appetizer, cut into semicircular pieces and roasted with honey and anise seed, or as an accompaniment to Berkshire pork.
The squash pieces are roasted in olive oil, then further caramelized with the addition of honey toward the end of the cooking time (adding the honey too soon will cause the squash to get too dark before it’s completely cooked).
John Broening cooks at Duo and Olivea in Denver.
Roasted Acorn Squash with Honey and Pistachios
Serves 4-6.
Ingredients
1 medium acorn squash, about 2 pounds
3 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper
2 teaspoons toasted anise seeds
1/3 cup honey
1/2 cup shelled pistachios, lightly toasted and chopped
Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Rinse the squash. Cut in half vertically. Scoop out the seeds with a spoon. Lay each half cut side down on a cutting board and cut horizontally into 1/2-inch thick semi- circular pieces. Spread out squash on two sheet trays covered with parchment paper. Sprinkle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
Roast until golden brown, about 30 minutes. Drizzle the honey and sprinkle the anise seeds over the squash and cook another 5 minutes. Serve warm, sprinkled with the pistachios.
