As we know, I am starting to wean Ruby & what better baby led weaning food than a stick of lovely sweet lightly roasted butternut squash. I noticed last week that carrott, one of the only foods that, since forever, has stayed on the yucky step, was all of a sudden requested on George's plate. Yes, he only had a little and yes I expect it was entirely to do with his little sister's lustful licks and munches but it was major progress.
I'll get to the point. My challenge. Moving delicious in season butternut squash back to the yummy step.
I based my recipe on Jamie Oliver's Roasted Squash, Sage, chestnut and pancetta risotto and made a few changes to better suit my time and George's tastes. George likes sweet curry type spices but not too much heat - the chilli is out, some cumin is in. When at all possible I like to have dinner done and dusted, or at least prepped, in the afternoon when George is at pre school so that when he gets back I can concentrate on him and Ruby. Risotto is at its creamy and plump best when served immediately so some things do have to be sacrificed, but I was pretty pleased with today's concoction, I just added a little more water for the final bake/heat through to stop it drying out too much. I baked the squash smothered in olive oil, ground cumin, coriander and a little mild curry powder this morning, leaving a wedge of squash to be baked alone for Ruby later. Made the basic risotto in the 45 mins after dropping George at pre school and taking Ruby out to a mums and baby group then baked the whole lot together for 20 minutes at tea time. I tend to give things like that a little bit of time under the grill just to pander to George's 'crunch' desires.
Wedges smothered in olive oil and about a tbsp of ground cumin & ground coriander and baked for 30 mins |
Cover with pancetta slices and a bit of sage and bake for another 15 mins |
Pull skin off squash and briefly mash and tear up pancetta and combine |
The Delicious result! |
Simple roasted wedges for Rubes |
Clean plate from George - Result! |