Oven Roasted Butternut Squash (2024)

So simple yet so elegant, Oven Roasted Butternut Squash is a tasty and versatile side dish that goes good with just about anything, any time of day!

I recently came to realize[once again]that I don’t often enough share mysuper easy, every day liferecipes, likethisOven Roasted Butternut Squash, which I pretty much eat on a weekly basis whenever squash is in season.

I guess it’s because I find they are way too simple to deservethe exclusivity of an entire post. Plus, my mind is always like: “Duh, people already KNOW how to make this basic stuff, they certainly don’t need me to show themagain.

But sometimes, even when we know how to make something we tend to forget about them and it’s nice to be reminded of their existence. Plus, it’s often interesting to check outsomeone else’s take on a familiar recipe.

Besides, we’re not always in the mood for elaborate dishes and sometimes, the simplest things in life turn out to be the best…For me, butternut squash that gets slowly roasted in a hotoven until it caramelizes would be one of those things.

Caramelization really is the key with this dish. You’d be surprised what itbrings to the squashin terms of depth and flavor. Also,baking the squash as opposed to steaming or boiling it makes it so rich and thick and creamy… you don’t need to do or add anything to it after it’s done baking.

Oh, and for the record, you mustn’t absolutely use butternut squash for this dish to work. You can use this exact same techniquewith basically any kind of winter squash: buttercup, acorn, carnival, kabosha oreven spaghetti squash.

They’re all equallydelicious!

The first thing you need to do ispreheat youroven to 375°F. Small detail, but very important nonetheless. This makes all the difference in the world. Your oven needs to be nice and hot as soon as the squash enters it.

While that temperature is climbing, cut the butternut squash in half and scoop out the guts and seeds with a spoon. I like to use my trustyice cream spoon for that. I find it has the perfect shape as well as the necessary sturdiness and the sharp edges make the task so much easier.

Place your squash halves in a dark roasting or broiler pan and drizzle them with a generous amount of extra-virgin olive oil, then sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper.

Dark metal pans absorb and spread heat more quickly and efficiently than lighter-colored ones, which plays a big role in the browning and caramelizing process. If you didn’t have a dark roasting pan, crank up the oven heat to 425°F and make sure to keep an extra close eye on the water situation.

Turn the squash flesh side down and pour about 1/4 cup of water atthe bottom of the pan.

Bake the squashthe oven, uncovered, for about 40-45 minutes, until itbecomes really soft and can easily be pierced with the tip of a sharp knife.

You might want to check on it from time to time to make sure that the squashisn’t burning. You want the water to eventually completely evaporate, otherwise, thesquash wouldn’tcaramelize, but still, you don’twant itto burn. Add a tinybit more water if you feel things are getting a tad too dry or toodark…

When the squash is fully cooked, remove it from the oven and allow it to cool for a few minutes, until you can safely handle it, then flip it over and scoop the flesh out with a spoon.

Again, my weapon of choice for this would be my trustyice cream spoon!

You can serve the squashas is or mash roughly with a fork or potato masherif you’re in the mood for something that’s more like a puree.

And there you have it, so simple, yet so elegant. This tasty side dish goes well with just about anything and goes down very good any time of day. It can also very easily be made ahead of time and reheated in the microwave or in a skillet over medium heat. The beauty of the skillet technique is that you can add a little bit of oil to it and have that squash caramelize for a second time!

Oooh goodness! Can you feel the love? I think I amtotally, shamelessly, helplessly infatuated!

I wish it were always squash season…

Why not change things up a bit and turn this delicious oven roasted butternut squash you just made into a soup?Click here to make this Oven Roasted Butternut Squash Soup!

And check out the post to learn how to Cut and Peel your Butternut Squash the Easy Way!