I didn’t discover delicata squash until about five years ago. In fact, I had never even heard of it. But one Saturday during my morning wanderings at a local farmers market, I found them!
Usually bright yellow with bold green stripes, delicata squash is amazingly beautiful and tasty. While similar to many other autumn squash varieties, what makes delicata rather unique is its tender skin that’s delicate enough to eat after roasting.
I love this squash so much that last Thanksgiving I created a side dish, Roasted Delicata, Apple, and Onion Tian, to feature it. But truth be told, you don’t need to get fancy or complicated to enjoy this vegetable. Sliced, seasoned, and roasted—delicata squash makes for a simple, delicious side dish your whole family will enjoy.
So get out to a local farmers market, co-op, or even your grocery store and pick up 2-3 delicata squash. Literally, you’re 5 minutes of prep away from an awesome side dish. But hurry—delicata squash usually disappear by December, so get shopping now!
Cheers!
Bruce
PrintRoasted Delicata Squash
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- Author: Bruce Bradley
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Ingredients
- 2–3 delicata squash (about 2 pounds)
- 1 tablespoon oil
- salt and pepper to taste
Optional Seasoning
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Wash and dry squash. Slice off ends of squash and discard. Then cut squash in half lengthwise. Scoop out seeds using spoon to create squash boats. Finally, cut into 1/3 to 1/2-inch crescent-shaped slices of squash. Two pounds of squash should yield about 4 cups.
- Toss squash with oil, optional rosemary, and season with salt and pepper.
- Roast squash on a rimmed baking sheet making sure it’s arranged in a single layer and not overcrowded. Bake for 20 minutes, then using a spatula, turn squash. Roast for an additional 10-15 minutes or until squash is golden brown and soft.
- Serve right out of the oven and enjoy!
Notes
We recommend organic ingredients if possible.
A high quality olive oil or avocado oil works great for roasting this squash.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Category: Salads & Sides
Kitchen Tips and Resources:
- A couple heavy-duty rimmed baking sheets are essentials for roasting vegetables. Try to avoid the flimsier varieties since they can bend, twist, and cook less evenly over time. You can buy baking sheets from just about any place that sells quality kitchen bakeware, but here’s a link for them on Amazon and at Williams-Sonoma.
- A high quality set of cutting knives can make a huge difference, especially when you’re cooking REAL food. My local knife shop advised me to invest in the higher quality Zwilling J.A. Henckels Twin Signature brand (much higher quality than the J.A. Henckels International brand) and time has proven them right. (To make sure you know which Henckels knives are better, here’s a tip — look for the “twins” on the knives vs. the single guy sporting the trident.) While you can buy these knives online, if you’ve got a local knife/cutlery store, support them instead. I love my local cutlery store and bring my knives in every six months or so to get them maintained with a nice, sharp edge!
- A great, non-slip cutting board is an invaluable kitchen asset when cutting up the vegetables. I upgraded to these Epicurean non-slip boards last year, and I’ve been really pleased with them.
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4 Responses
Bruce
I love all kind of squash right now I have 5 different varieties sitting in a bowl on my counter, love to use apples and nuts with them
Lil
I couldn’t agree with you more, Lil! And yes, apples and fruits/nuts of all kinds add wonderful tastes and textures to any squash dish. Mmmm
If you’ve got a favorite squash dish, please share it with me. I’d love to try it out and maybe post it on the blog!
Thanks for your comment and for visiting our blog. Hope to see you here again soon!
Cheers!
Bruce
I will second that! I sing the praises of delicata squash to squash lovers and not- so-squash lovers alike! Like Bruce, I found it probably about 5-ish years ago. It is sweet, tender and delicious all by itself. We slice it in half the long ways, place it meat side down in a cake pan with about an inch of water and throw it in the oven until tender. It fills the house with a heavenly sweet, cinnamony aroma that’ll make your mouth water. The kids like a little butter n sprinkle of brown sugar, but both are truly unnecessary.
Hi Brenda! Thanks for your comment! Glad to see some other delicata squash lovers! I’ll have to try your method of cooking it. Do you eat it skin and all that way?
Thanks for stopping by! Hope to see you commenting on here again sometime soon!
Cheers!
Bruce