Butternut Squash-Feta Muffin Squares

All right, all right, the title of this post is dumb. But I don't know what happened to my muffin tin, so I couldn't really call this creation "muffins," could I? And in the vein of Lisa's post ("Butternutz"...!), I decided to also post a butternut squash recipe while it's still considered winter in this hemisphere.

I modified this Pumpkin and Feta Muffins recipe from 101 Cookbooks, one of my favorite food blogs as of late.

I actually am not a huge squash fan, but given the fact that it was fall when I made this recipe, I figured it was time to try a savory muffin recipe with a winter squash for the sake of feeling like there are seasons in Hawai‘i. And I used peeled, chopped asparagus instead of spinach because that's what I so happened to have on hand at the time.

Recipe

1tbs butter

2 tbs olive oil

2 c. pumpkin or butternut squash, cubed into 1/2 in. pieces

salt and pepper to taste

1 c. peeled asparagus, sliced into coins.

2 tbs chopped parsley or cilantro

3 tbs sunflower seed kernels

3/4 c. grated parmesan

1/2 c. cubed feta

2 tsp. whole-grain mustard

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

3/4 c. milk

2 c. flour

4 tsp baking powder

1 tsp fine-grain sea salt

Pre-heat oven to 405 degrees F. Butter muffin tins (or in my case, 9x13 in. cake pan), or use muffin liners.

Toss the cubed squash or pumpkin with some olive oil, salt and pepper. Arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake for 15–25 minutes. I used one "normal"-sized butternut squash and it seemed to be enough, as the squash will shrink a bit as it cooks (Note: I should've eHow'd it as to how to get the meat out of those oddly-shaped fruits. 'Twas a bit dangerous for me...). Set aside to cool.

Put 2/3 of squash in a large mixing bowl. Gently fold in asparagus/spinach/whatever greens, parsley, sunflower seeds, parm, mustard and two-thirds of the feta. In a separate mixing bowl, beat eggs and milk, then add to squash mixture. Sift in flour, baking powder, salt and pepper. Fold until just combined. Do not overmix.

Pour into muffin tins until each one is 3/4 full, or dump with reckless abandon into baking dish. Sprinkle remaining squash and feta on top. Bake for 15–20 minutes or until golden and set. Do not overcook, or else your savory babies will get dry. Sad face. Makes 12 servings.

What nice surprises with the parmesan and sunflower seeds! A vegetarian's dream meal muffin, I would imagine. And yeah, you had really better like squash to eat these colorful cubes of carb.

Butternutz

My mom delivers seasonal fruits and vegetables to me every time I see her at my grandmother's weekly Sunday night dinner, like a CSA that knows your proclivities. She gave me a butternut squash, and after I roasted half of it with olive oil (delicious!!), I decided to try a soup. Butternut squash has the most wonderful natural flavor. Really does taste like butter.

This is the second veggie soup I've made (the first was potato leek; the post is forthcoming), and I am a total convert. Soups are soup-er simple (Margot isn't the only one who can pun!!) to make when you have a food processor, which I bought only about a year ago. So key.

This was, of course, a Minimalist recipe from his list of Thanksgiving dishes:

13. Sauté sliced shallots in olive oil, then add chunks of butternut squash, some rosemary and chicken stock or water to cover. As the soup simmers, bake strips of prosciutto until crisp. Purée the soup, swirl in some cream if you like and serve topped with crumbled prosciutto.

I used half of a butternut squash, about 1.5 cups of chicken stock, rosemary from the front of my parent's house, and one strip of BACON. so delicious!