I have voted this my new favorite meal for two important key reasons:
- One it’s super easy to make and is done in under 45 minutes
- It’s super delicious with the basil, cayenne and Parmesan melded together to create a gourmet meal. I would say it’s fit for a restaurant…..just wanted to brag a bit 😉
Marc and I enjoyed this as one of our favorite meals when we first got married. I was doing my Master’s degree and he was also in school, so we were short on time all the time and now with two kids its the same. Now our whole family can enjoy this meal.
Enjoying my family is important to me. I love being with them and time is valuable. It’s hard to manage it all, and sometimes you want a healthy meal that is simple and little time to prep and cook. This meal takes longer, just because it takes me a long time to cut the squash. In fact, the hardest part of this dish is cutting the darn squash. You can buy pre-cut squash at Trader Joe’s or at Costco to make it easier. I always cut it myself, because we use squash from Farmer’s Market and our own garden. I love the freshness of it all.
I love how it doesn’t require but 7 ingredients, 4 of those being spices. Pair it with a great salad or fish. Marc loves fish with this dish. I just drizzled some halibut with grapeseed oil, added some salt, pepper and a spice blend and baked on 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes. I finished it off with a squeeze of lemon. You can pair with lemon chicken or salmon as well.
We kept going up for seconds and there was barely enough for one very measly leftover. Another easy meal for the win and something that our kids can enjoy as well. Reagan loves it.
Prep time: 10 minutes       Cook time: 30-40
Ingredients:Â
- 1 butternut squash, seeded and chopped into bite size pieces with skin off
- 1/4 c grapeseed oil or olive oil (I don’t like to heat olive oil to high heats)
- 1/2 c Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 – 2 tsp Basil
- salt and pepper to taste
Directions: 1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a casserole dish with coconut oil. 2. After cubing the butternut squash, throw it in the casserole dish. 3. Pour oil over top and stir to coat all the squash. 4. Add the Parmesan cheese and spices and stir, mixing it all together, coating all the squash. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until squash is tender when poked with a fork (uncovered).
Enjoy with a great salad or side of fish.
Servings: 4
Now I have to get back to my kiddos!! Trying to soak up as much baby giggles and smiles, and toddler talks I can.
Have a wonderful weekend!!