Friday, November 21, 2008

Thanksgiving Meal Marathon Day 3

This recipe comes from a favorite of mine. It is a book titled 'Mediterranean Vegan Kitchen' by Donna Klein. I spent one year as a vegetarian (an experiment that didn't work out so well for my body) and approximately 10 years without any kind of dairy. I got where I am today with a passion for food and health through food because of these challenges and it gave me hours of experimenting and tried and true ideas to make food that pleased everyone, but didn't get me sick. This is one of those books that I enjoy for just that reason. It has great vegetable dish ideas and anyone, vegan or not, can really appreciate them. It is a nice lesson that we can have warm and memorable holiday meals without the highly processed and bad-fat -high sugar dishes usually prepared.

Provencal Butternut Squash Gratin

1 (3LB) butternut squash, peeled, seeds removed, coarsely chopped (you can do this part the night before)
1 cup packed flat leaf parsley, chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/4 cup unbleached all purpose flour
1/2 tsp ground sage
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup vegetable or chicken stock
2 tbls extra virgin olive oil

Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly oil a shallow casserole dish about 2.5 QT.
In a large bowl, combine the squash, parsley, and garlic. Sprinkle with the flour, sage, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Toss well to combine. Add the broth and 1 tbls of the oil. Stir well to combine. Transfer to the prepared baking dish and drizzle with the remaining olive oil.
Bake for 50 to 60 minutes. Stir halfway through the cooking time. Bake until the top is nicely browned and the squash is melting and tender.
Serve hot.

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