Maple-Cinnamon Butternut Squash
I was craving comfort food so I made a skillet roasted chicken with mushrooms for dinner on Sunday night. I decided to make a simple side dish of baked maple-cinnamon butternut squash. My mom made baked squash with brown sugar a lot when I was a kid and I always loved it. I changed the flavors a bit by using butter, real maple syrup, and cinnamon sprinkled on top. I baked them for about an hour and served them as is with our roasted chicken and some asparagus. I like to eat it straight from the squash but you can also scoop it out and serve it like mashed potatoes. We all enjoyed this maple-cinnamon butternut squash and I thought it paired nicely with the rest of the meal.
How to Make Maple-Cinnamon Butternut Squash
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Slice each squash lengthwise in half. Scrape out the seeds and rinse then pat dry.
Spread a little butter all over each half of the squash. Drizzle some real maple syrup on each, to taste then top with a sprinkling of cinnamon.
Place the squash facing up in a deep baking dish(s), add enough water to cover the bottom of the dish. Cover with tin foil and bake for 45-50 minutes or until fork-tender. Take off the tin foil and turn the oven to broil so you can brown the tops of each squash – watch carefully so it doesn’t burn.
Remove from the oven and season with a bit of sea salt, to taste. You can slice into chunks or scoop out the flesh and eat it like mashed potatoes – whatever suits your fancy. Enjoy.
Ingredients
- 2 butternut squash halved lengthwise and seeded
- Butter to taste
- Real maple syrup to taste (I used about 1 tablespoon on each)
- Cinnamon to taste
- Sea salt to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Slice each squash lengthwise in half. Scrape out the seeds and rinse then pat dry.
- Spread a little butter all over each half of the squash. Drizzle some real maple syrup on each, to taste then top with a sprinkling of cinnamon.
- Place the squash facing up in the dish in a deep baking dish, add enough water to cover the bottom of the dish.
- Cover with tin foil and bake for 45-50 minutes or until fork-tender.
- Take off the tin foil and turn the oven to broil so you can brown the tops of each squash – watch carefully so it doesn’t burn. Remove from the oven and season with a bit of sea salt, to taste.
- You can slice into chunks or scoop out the flesh and eat it like mashed potatoes – whatever suits your fancy. Enjoy.
How come you can still find butternut squash at this time of the year??? I miss them terribly! These look HEAVENLY!
Nice. I like the way you seasoned the squash. Something different to try.
This is one of my favorite ways to enjoy squash! It’s so simple but always so delicious.
Love butternuts, but we are hooked on my butternut and orange soup recipe. Must try roasting them again. We have just finished last year’s crop, time almost to plant again. Diane
what a great side dish! the combination is simply delicious.