Baked Squash and Maple Syrup

Maple syrup is a uniquely North American sweetener. Here it adds just the right subtle flavor to a colorful puree of butternut squash. An equal amount of acorn squash can be beautifully substituted for butternut squash for a little variety.

Step: 1

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).

Step: 2

Place squash halves, cut side up, on large baking sheet. bake until very tender, about 50 minutes. Remove from oven and cool slightly. Using large spoon, scoop out squash flesh and transfer to large bowl.

Step: 3

In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium-low heat. Add chopped onion and ground nutmeg and saute until onion is tender and light brown, about 10 minutes. Transfer to bowl with squash. Add chicken broth and maple syrup.

Step: 4

Puree mixture in batches in processor until smooth. Season squash puree with salt and pepper. Return puree to same saucepan. Stir puree over medium heat until heated through. Transfer to bowl and serve.

Per Serving: 240 calories; protein 3g; carbohydrates 44.1g; fat 8.1g; cholesterol 20.8mg; sodium 147.2mg.

The most obvious way to choose a side dish is to look at your main dish (pasta, chicken, seared tofu) and pick more different. If you’re making pasta, make sure for a simple healthy dish . Made steak? Go for more light. If you’re making stir-fry with rice, it must not a good idea to also make a rice salad.

One make sure is also can make to cooking process . You don’t want to push more often your oven by scheduling three dishes at once in there, or be rounding four pans on the stovetop . But often you can make a dish do double-duty .