Roasting big batches of winter squash and root vegetables is one of my favorite autumn rituals. It provides me with an easy springboard for several days’ worth of meal ideas. For instance, here are three quick meals made with the roasted spaghetti squash, beets and kabocha squash pictured below:
Breakfast: Sauteed onion plus tomatillas and greens from the last of my garden harvest, scrambled with eggs and served inside a roasted kabocha squash “taco.” Spiced with hot sauce.
Lunch for Two Days: Spaghetti Squash Salad featuring a bed of roasted squash topped by roasted beets, spicy pumpkin seeds, sauteed green and red peppers and cilantro pesto, which is just like a basil pesto with cilantro subbing for the basil and the addition of some roasted chiles and toasted ground cumin. (Sorry the picture doesn’t do justice to this colorful medley, but it tasted great!)
Dinner: Salad of kale with red peppers and tahini dressing (recipe below) plus steak (or protein of choice) and microwaved cubed potatoes.
Lunch a Couple Days Later: Sauteed roasted spaghetti squash and frozen peas tossed with leftover tahini dressing + pan-fried salmon.
See how easy it is to spin several meals once you have some basic jumpstarts in the way of roasted vegetables and a couple sauces. Did this inspire any ideas for you? Share them in the comments!
Now for the Recipe: Recipe: Warming Tahini Sauce
Tahini is a butter (like peanut butter) made from ground sesame seeds. While it has a fairly strong taste, it makes a good base for a uniquely flavorful sauce that can also be used as a dip or, thinned slightly, as a dressing.
Recently I ran across a couple recipes that included honey (which helps mellow the tahini) and turmeric (which added golden color and a warming flavor.) Both these additions are included in the “beyond-the-classic” version below.
Step 1: “Cook Garlic”
- 1-2 tsp. finely minced garlic
- 2-4 Tbsp. lemon juice (preferably freshly squeezed)
Combine garlic and lemon juice in cup of immersion blender. Allow to sit for 5-10 minutes to “cook and tame” the raw garlic slightly.
Step 2: Add Seasonings and Oil
- 2 Tbsp. olive oil
- 1-2 tsp. honey (preferably raw and unfiltered)
- 2 tsp. ground turmeric
- 1/8 to ¼ tsp. sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper or 2 shakes cayenne pepper
Stir olive oil, honey, turmeric, salt and black pepper (or cayenne) into lemon-garlic mixture.
Step 3: Blend in Tahini
- ¼ cup tahini or pumpkin seed butter
- 1 Tbsp. hot water plus more as needed
Add tahini and process until smooth, adding hot water as necessary to thin to desired consistency, depending on whether you’ll use it as a sauce, dip or dressing.
Taste and add additional lemon juice, salt or pepper (or cayenne), to taste.
Notes
Pumpkin Seed Butter Sprouts Market in my area has recently started carrying pumpkin seed butter that is a fun addition to dishes and can be used instead of tahini.
Honey If yours has hardened, warm just a few seconds in the microwave so it will more easily blend into the sauce.
Tahini It should be stored in the refrigerator (and pumpkin seed butter, too) to avoid going rancid. Once cold however, both butters separate and turn into hard blobs. So try to remove from the refrigerator the day or at least a few hours in advance so it can warm to room temperature. Then stir vigorously to mix in any oil that has separated and floated to the top.
Turmeric For a richer taste, toast in a dry skillet over low heat for just 2-3 minutes until fragrant and then add to sauce.
I hope these ideas get your brain spinning with some meal ideas for the next few days. Quick! Jot them down and you have a game plan to make sure your healthy eating intentions don’t get hijacked.
The think ahead and plan habit is such a guaranteed solution. Why is that? Find out the science-based reason in an upcoming post!