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Thursday, November 26, 2009

Gobble, Gobble...and a side dish superstar!!!

I feel kind of guilty not posting an actual Thanksgiving Feast today....but only kinda. There was no way in h. e. double hockey sticks that I was going to have time to actually take time away from the mad-house cooking and planning and Pumpkin Beer drinking to sort through and edit pictures and lay it all out. NO WAY! I will bring you the dishes little by little over the next couple of weeks...but for now, I'll just wish everybody who is giving thanks today a wonderful day filled with family, friends and FOOD! We have many "family" recipes that we repeat each year, but I am always the one (go figure) to test out new recipes each year and see if they're fit to slip into the rotation in the coming years. This was a good one. I liked it at least...nobody else in this house did. I knew my mom would love it...so I may add it as a small side in coming years...but for now it's just a maybe.Butternut Squash with Pecans, Bleu Cheese and Cranberries adapted from a recipe by Nigella Lawson's Nigella Express 2 1/4 lbs. butternut squash, peel & large dice 1 1/2 Tbs. olive oil 1 c. whole cranberries, fresh or frozen- my addition 3 stalks fresh thyme, leaves stripped 1/2 c. pecans 1/2 c. crumbled bleu cheese Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Toss squash with olive oil and thyme leaves and place in roasting dish. Cook for ~25 minutes. Add cranberries and cook another 15 minutes, until squash is tender. Dump the whole dish of squash & cranberries on to a serving dish and sprinkle with the pecans and bleu cheese. Toss a bit. Season with salt and pepper. Serve. This was a delicious hearty dish with the earthiness of the squash, the tart pop of the cranberries and the nuttiness with the pungent finish of the bleu cheese. Very assertive. Me likey. Oh yeah, and it's also my submission for I Heart Cooking Clubs this week...where our theme is Side Dish Superstars! Superstar! Sometimes, when I get nervous... Molly Shannon, you're a comic genius :D ....peace and turkey grease, my friends... IHCC

Would you like to comment?

  1. You and I have the same measuring cups, thought that was kinda funny to see the same ones I just finished using on your blog. Happy Thanksgiving and this looks great!

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  2. Happy Thanksgiving! The squash dish looks super great with pecans and fresh cranberries!

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  3. This looks and sounds wonderful. A Happy Thanksgiving to you and those you love. Blessings...Mary

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  4. What a dish, and the food looks devine! Blessings to you and yours!

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  5. Ooh, I think I'd like this too but I might substitute the fresh cranberries for dried ones so they wouldn't be as tart. Very colorful too.

    Happy Thanksgiving Girli!

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  6. Mmm...I think adding the cranberries makes it just about perfect! Great pick.

    Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family!

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  7. Happy Thanksgiving!

    The colors in this are wonderful. So autumn. I hope I can find cranberries here in Tokyo.

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  8. My husband loves butternut squash but I'm not a big fan. However with your addition of bleu cheese, cranberries and nuts I could really go for this recipe.

    Hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving.
    Sam

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  9. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving with your family!!

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  10. take a break, ponder the family and heckticness of the day


    Be very Thankful

    Have a wonderful time

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  11. I love the addition of cranberries - genius!
    Have a wonderful holiday!

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  12. happy turkey day - hope your entire weekend is filled with - well whatever it is you want to fill it with!

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  13. Wait - did you say pumpkin beer? You know beer is my weakness. Need more info on that one!

    I think your recipe sounds wonderful! We pretty much stick with the traditional Thanksgiving meal here - my mother freaked out when I started using big turkey paper plates and serving buffet style. I can't imagine what she'd do if I changed up any of the dishes! LOL!

    Have a wonderful Thanksgiving! *Hugs*

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  14. Happy Thanksgiving!

    I had actually been planning on making this as well but then my dad requested mashed butternut squash. And there went that idea. It's okay, I will make it for myself and will probably appreciate it more. I love that you added cranberries to it. PERFECT!

    Pumpkin beer sounds so good right now...and its only 11AM!

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  15. Happy Thanksgiving!!! This is a great side dish...yum!

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  16. Looks fabulous. Happy Thanksgiving and pumpkin beer drinking. :-)

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  17. That looks SO yum. I wish ANYthing that I cooked looked that pretty! Happy T-Day!

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  18. This looks and sounds fabulous!!

    Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family!

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  19. Happy Thanksgiving!

    This looks wonderful. I have a little aversion to bleu cheese, but on Saturday I was up your way...Middlebury...and dined at Culinary Treasures. They serve a salad with crisp granny smiths, cranberries, candied pecans, and bleu cheese that really hit the spot. It's making me think that I like bleu cheese now and I bet that I'd dig this side dish.

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  20. Dar,

    Happy Thanksgiving and Happy Holidays!! That dish looks utterly YUMMY..... That would have been a hit on my family's dinner table last night!!

    Gin

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  21. What a beautiful dish, except for the blue cheese part, I'd be all over it :)

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  22. What a beautiful and colorful dish. I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

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  23. Heather, this looks so good! I'm just like you, I always try something new every year, and my family usually turns their noses at me!! Go figure!

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  24. What a yummy side dish - Happy Thanksgiving!

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  25. This is a gorgeous dish with all the colors! Seems like a lot of people don't like blue cheese. I love it and this sounds fantastic!

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  26. I think that looks just delicious - pity it was only a maybe for your family.

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  27. what the...how did i miss this post! i've never seen anything look so tempting in my life! i want to make it today!

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  28. I Love the savory combination of pecans with blue cheese, adding cranberries to the mix would've created magic !... Hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving....!

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  29. An interesting combination of ingredients. I'd like to try a sample of this, grins.

    Hope your day was filled with good food and good memories, old and new, to bring you joy in the years ahead.

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  30. well of course you're the one to slip in the new food! LOL (i get in trouble for doing that every year hahaha). this does look worth repeating though :)

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  31. This looks like it's bursting with awesome flavor. It's so beautiful!

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