Hey, Roaring Foodies!
How about a hearty, spicy, softly sweet plate of baked vegetables?
Butternut squash tastes like pumpkin though it has something of a nutty flavor and a creamier texture. I don't buy it often, perhaps because it's way more expensive than our regular pumpkins here. I find them perfect for a baked dish, and that's exactly what I did. I marinated them in spicy paprika and garlic and put them in the oven on a bed of abundant vegetables; I even put an apple that I had left orphaned in the fridge. Let's see how you like it π
I baked these vegetables to take in my lunch box to work. Fortunately, I had plenty of time, because unlike other days, I'd start at 2:00 in the afternoon. So my plan was to arrive at the office in the neighboring state at noon and have a leisurely lunch. After that, work!
INGREDIENTS
- About 150 gr potato, sliced. Leave the skin on
- About 150 gr carrot, sliced. Leave the skin on
- About 150 gr butternut squash. Leave the skin on
- 2 cups finely julienned chili pepper (I used a mix of sweet and hot)
- 1 cup onion, cut in half rings of about 1 cm
- 1 cup finely sliced apple, cored but with the skin on (for vitamins! A, C, K... π)
- 4 tablespoons freshly crushed garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon hot paprika (Jauja is really hot π₯πΆοΈπ)
- 1 tablespoon sweet paprika
- Enough olive oil to grease tha baking pan + making the marinade
- Salt to taste
THE PROCESS
To prepare this dish as simple as it is quick to make, but very tasty and nutritious, I washed all the vegetables very well. Then I cut them as you can see in the pictures.
I removed the seeds and veins from the chili peppers, peeled the onion and cut it into half rings, peeled the garlic cloves...
...and crushed them with my old mortar and pestle.
This small apple would add some natural sweetness. It was indeed a nice touch π I would definitely do it again; it was a flavorful contrast to the spicy paprika.
Horacia said it was fine, so...
I drizzled a pyrex with olive oil and put all those vegetables inside.
They'd make a tasty bed for the butternut squash I had brought from the supermarket.
I just mixed them a little bit to cover them with oil and then it was time to prepare the marinade for the small pumpkin.
I mixed the spicy and sweet paprika, garlic, salt, and olive oil...
Look at that beautiful color β€οΈ
I sliced a medium sized potato and most of the biug carrot. They were the additionals to the small pumpkin; I think they go so well together.
I didn't peel the potato, carrot or pumpkin. I left the skin on. More nutrients! I did remove the seeds of the butternut squash. The slices were a little less than one centimeter thick. This way they would absorb more of the marinade and bake faster.
I topped the potato and carrot slices with some of the marinade. They went first in the pyrex to be mixed with the vegetables.
I used most of the marinade on the pumpkin slices. I arranged them on top.
They baked for 60 minutes in my little electric oven at 350Β°F. After that...
My lunch was ready!
Hot, sweet and spicy vegetables.
On top of my veggies, a meaty slice of butternut squash to brighten up my lunch hour π I highly recommend it. It's a satisfying lunch without making you feel heavy. The afternoon at work went light and my stomach was happy.
It never ceases to amaze me the #plantpower of some foods to comfort body and soul. For me, the combination of apple and butternut squash was a true delight.
Bon appetite!
All text and images are my own. I have taken the pictures with my Redmi 9T cell phone. And if any GIFs here, I've used GIPHY for all them.
Thank you so much for your visit :)
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