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Caramelized Onion and Butternut Squash Roast with Chestnuts
Veganomicon, by Isa Moskowitz and Terry Romero---sent in by Lucy
Squash, white beans and chestnuts (!) on a bed of caramelized onions, with an herbed bread crumb topping. Lucy's mother made this special dish for Thanksgiving.
450 g 1 pound onions (that's about 1.5 good-sized onions, I used one white and one red)
79 ml1/3 cup olive oil
450 g1 pound fresh chestnuts
910 g2 pounds butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
28 g1 15oz. can white beans, drained and rinsed
10 ml2 teaspoons dried thyme
7 ml1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 ml1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
7 ml1 1/2 teaspoons salt
Pepper
120 ml1/2 cup vegetable broth (I ran out, so I replaced it with 1/2 cup diluted white wine vinegar)
Crumb topping:
120 ml1/2 cup bread crumbs (panko!)
30 ml2 tablespoons olive oil
2 ml1/2 teaspoon dried rubbed sage
Pinch of ground cayenne
2 ml1/2 teaspoon salt
Pepper
To prepare the fresh chestnuts:
Preheat the oven to 425. Slit each chestnut a bit so they don't explode while roasting, and lay them on a pan. Roast for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool a bit, then peel. The easiest way to do this is to crush them together a bit to loosen the shells from the nut by laying them in a paper towel, bunching it up, and rubbing them together. Chop the nuts coarsely.
For the roast:
Place the onions in a 9x13 inch baking dish and toss to coat with the olive oil. Bake for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from oven. Add the rest of the ingredients for the roast and stir so that everything is well coated. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 35-45 minutes until the squash and nuts are tender.
For the topping:
Toss all of the ingredients together. Remove the foil from the pan and spread the crumbs evenly on top. Bake for an additional 15 minutes, until the topping is lightly browned.
Dig in!