Roasted Kabocha Squash & Black Bean Tacos with Chili-Lime Crema

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If you’ve never had this underrated squash, I recommend you give it a try. Kabocha squash is available year-round, but is at its best in late Summer and early Fall. The flavor is slightly sweet and has the same texture as butternut squash. It’s rich with vitamin A that is good for immunity, eyes, skin, hair, and healthy white blood cells. It’s also is a good source of iron.

The hardest part about this recipe is cutting and peeling the Kobocha, also known as a Japanese pumpkin. But here is a trick. Cut it in half and microwave for about 2-3 minutes. This will help soften the skin, therefore easier to peel. All else fails, leave the skin on. It is actually edible.

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Serves 3-4    Difficulty level – easy peasy

  • ½ medium Kabocha – about 1-1.5 pounds
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • sea salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 tablespoon ground cumin
  • ½ cup roughly chopped cilantro
  • 1/3 cup diced or thinly sliced red onion
  • 1 cup shredded Romaine lettuce
  • ½ cup crumbled feta cheese
  • 1 avocado sliced for topping
  • 1 lime cut into wedges

For the chili-lime crema

  • ½ cup sour cream
  • ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper (less if you don’t like it spicy, more if you do)
  • zest of 1 lime
  • 1 teaspoon lime juice
  • ¼ teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 425°. Start by cutting the ends off. Then cut in half, seed, and peel.

Chop the Kabocha into small cube-ish pieces – about ½” x ½”. The shape doesn’t matter so much, as long as they are about the same size so they will cook evenly.

Toss with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, salt, and pepper. (Note: You can roast the whole squash and save half for snacks, to put in a salad, or soup.) Roast in the oven until soft and slightly brown about 20-25 minutes.

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In the meantime, mix the black beans, ground cumin, about ¾ of the red onion, and cilantro in a medium bowl. Once the squash is cooked, add to the bean mixture and toss to coat.

Warm the tortillas on a griddle pan and keep warm by wrapping in aluminum foil, kitchen towel, or tortilla warmer if you have one.

To make the chili-lime crema, mix all the ingredients together. Set aside.

Put the lettuce, extra chopped onion, feta, avocado, chili-lime crema, and lime wedges on a platter for self-serving. Serve the squash and bean mixture, along with the condiments and warm tortillas.

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Variations:

  • Make it lighter and use non-fat Greek yogurt instead of sour cream.
  • Make it low carb and add all the condiments to the squash mixture and turn it into a salad.
  • Use other winter squash or sweet potatoes instead of Kabocha.
  • Use other kinds of beans like pinto, white beans, or kidney beans.
  • Add some cooked rice to the squash and bean mixture.
  • Add black olives to the squash and bean mixture.
  • Make it a tostada by keeping the tortillas on the griddle until crisp.
  • Make it into enchiladas by adding some cheese, rolling them up, putting them in a baking dish, adding enchilada sauce on bottom and top, with some cheese, and baking them at 375° for 20 minutes.

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Do Ahead:

  • Kabocha squash can be roasted 5 days ahead. Keep refrigerated.
  • The mixture can be make 1 day ahead. Keep refrigerated and reheat in a pan on the stove or in microwave.

 

Roasted Butternut Squash & Ginger Soup with Herbed Croutons

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What is it about soup that is so comforting? Is it that it warms you all the way through from heat to toe to your soul? Or that it naturally slows you down because it’s hard to eat a hot soup fast. One of the reasons I love soup is because it is usually pretty easy to make, there is not a whole lot of planning involved, it’s quick, and most of the times you can make soup out of leftovers.

I remember as a kid my mom was very good at repurposing leftovers, and we had learned that by the third day if she hadn’t come up with something more creative, she was going to turn it into soup!

Even my daughter in kindergarten said her favorite food is soup. Not pizza, not pasta, not ice cream, soup. That’s my girl!

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I am labeling the difficulty level as “intermediate” but that’s only because this recipe is not your typical throw-in-the-pot-all-the-ingredients-and-let-it-cook kind of soup. There are a few parts to prepare separately and you will need an emersion blender or blender to puree it. I do have a quicker, easier version in the Variations sections below.

Serves 6       Difficulty level – intermediate

Ingredients:

For roasting the butternut squash:

  • 1 large butternut squash – about 1.5 – 2 pounds
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • ½ teaspoon sea salt
  • pinch of freshly ground pepper

For the soup

  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 1-2 garlic cloves, chopped
  • 3 tablespoons peeled and chopped ginger, separated into 2 and 1 tablespoon portions
  • 1 carrot, cut into ½ “ pieces
  • Crème Fraiche and pumpkin seeds for garnish – optional

For the croutons

  • about 2 cups cubed hearty bread like baguette or french bread
  • 1-2 tablespoons olive oil
  • ½-1 teaspoon dried thyme

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 425°. Cut, seed, peel, and chop the butternut squash into cube-ish pieces. The shape doesn’t matter so much, as long as they are about the same size so they will cook evenly. Toss with 2 tablespoon olive oil, salt, and pepper.

Roast in the oven until soft and slightly brown about 25-30 minutes. Lower the heat to 375° for the croutons.

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In the meantime, melt the butter in a large pot. Add the chopped onion, garlic, and 2 tablespoons of ginger. Sauté in the butter until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the carrots and sauté for another 5 minutes.

Add the roasted squash and enough vegetable stock to cover the vegetables. Bring to a boil.

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Lower heat to low and use an emersion blender to puree the soup. Alternatively, puree in a Vitamix. If using a Vitamix, 1, be very careful because the soup will be hot. And two, you will need to do it in 2 batches. Keep warm.

Toss the cubed bread with olive oil and thyme. Bake in the 375° oven until crisp, about 5-7 minutes.

Add the rest of the chopped ginger, stir, and serve hot with the herbed croutons.

Butternut squash soup

Variations:

  • Use chicken stock instead of vegetable stock. In a pinch, you can also use water.
  • Add about ½ cup cream or crème fraiche right after you puree the soup for a richer flavor and texture.
  • Short on time? Instead of roasting the butternut squash, throw it in the pot after the onions and carrots are sautéed. Add the stock, cover with a lid, and cook until soft, about 15-20 minutes depending on the size of the cut.
  • Instead of butternut squash, use Kabocha squash, acorn squash, pumpkin, or sweet potatoes.

Do Ahead:

  • Butternut squash can be roasted 5 days ahead. Keep refrigerated.
  • The whole soup can be made 5 days ahead. Keep refrigerated.
  • The croutons can be made up to one day ahead

 

Just for Halloween…