Sweet and Spicy Butternut Squash

I had some Butternut Squash in the house and usually I just roast with some olive oil and salt and pepper. This time I added a bunch of spices a little Maple Syrup and some fresh Orange Juice. It was very yummy . I am writing this up for 2 lbs. of butternut squash , feel free to cut this recipe in 1/2 . Please use pure maple syrup for this one and a fresh orange for the juice. This recipe would also be wonderful on sweet potatoes!

We loved it and it was a wonderful new side dish and one I will repeat often.

Now that you can buy butternut squash pre-cut there’s no excuse not to make this wonderful healthy vegetable more often.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

app. 2 lbs. butternut squash cut into 1 inch pieces ( pre-packaged is the way to go here)

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric

Pinch of cayenne pepper

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

2 Tablespoons pure Maple Syrup–grade A is what I use

Juice of one fresh orange–app. 6 Tablespoons

Directions:

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees.

I sprayed a large baking sheet with Cooking Spray — you must or use parchment or aluminum foil for easier clean-up . Just a little note– I used Bakers Joy cooking spray I find sometimes it works best on this type of recipe. I absolutely love this cooking spray for baking so why not for sticky gooey recipes? Clean up was a snap. (just saying)

Place all ingredients in a large bowl and mix together . I let it sit for a while before I roast, I find the oil and spices meld together nicely so if you have the time I would recommend doing this for maybe 15 minutes or longer.

Pour onto baking sheet. Roast in the oven until butternut squash is tender about 45 minutes, halfway through I removed and tossed .

Remove from oven when browned up and smelling delicious. (app. 45 minutes)

Serve it up.