Maple and Walnut Roasted Acorn Squash
A lot of squash recipes just aren't worth the hassle of peeling around the squash's curves and using all your muscle power to cut through them. This recipe is a real game-changer. It does not call for peeling and only calls for cutting after the squashes have been roasted. This way, the peeler is out the door and the knife slides through a little (or a lot) easier.
I altered this recipe slightly from Martha Rose Shulman's original New York Times recipe. The original only called for 2 tablespoons of maple syrup, but I didn't think this added enough flavor or caramelization so I increased the maple to 3 tablespoons. I also added the step of poking the squash flesh with a fork before baking. I found that if the squashes were left unpoked, I could only taste the walnut and syrup flavors at the surface of the squash, leaving the rest of it pretty tasteless. Adding the pokes lets the flavors travel all the way down the squash.
Either way, this is a scrummy way to serve up squash this fall. It's not sickly sweet like many squash recipes, but it still delivers the classic flavors of fall.
Let me know what you think of the recipe and don't forget to follow the sustainability tips below!
Serves: 8 as a side
Makes: 2 whole acorn squashes
Time: 1 and a half hours
Ingredients
2 acorn squash
3 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons walnut oil
Freshly ground nutmeg
A pinch of kosher salt, or flaky salt for serving
2 tablespoons ground walnuts or nut of choice
Steps
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Poke both squashes several times with a knife to create steam vents. Then, place both whole squashes on a large, rimmed baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes, or until soft enough to cut in half. Cut both squashes in half height-wise, using oven mitts to handle them. Carefully scoop out the seeds. (You can clean off the seeds and bake them separately with a bit of salt and oil for a yummy snack.)
Place the squash cut side up on the baking sheet. Sprinkle a small amount of nutmeg (and a pinch of salt if you do not have flaky salt for serving) onto each squash and pierce the flesh all over with a fork. In a small bowl, whisk together the maple syrup and walnut oil. Brush or spoon a light coating of the maple mixture onto the cut surface of the squash. Set the rest of the maple and oil aside. Bake to squash for about an hour, brushing with another coating of the maple and oil mixture every 10 minutes.
When the squashes are thoroughly cooked, brush with the remaining maple and oil and spoon about a tablespoonful of finely chopped walnuts into each squash. Bake for 5 to 10 more minutes, or until the walnuts are beginning to brown. Serve warm and eat up!
Sustainability tips
Squashes: Make sure these pups are in season when you make this dish (mid-fall is perfect in most places). This will make it easier to buy organically and as locally as possible. Buying organically and locally will ensure that your squashes don't contribute to pesticide contamination or excessive greenhouse gas emissions during travel.
Maple Syrup: Go for local syrup! This will decrease GHGs from travel and maybe even help you get to know your local syrup producers. Read all about it in my liquid sweeteners post!
Walnuts: Most walnuts for sale in the U.S. are grown in California, where they guzzle more water than the state can handle. To decrease your water use in this recipe, try using a local nut variety in place of the chopped walnuts. Sustainable hazelnut and pecan varieties are both abundant in the U.S.