Thursday, September 25, 2014

Recipe: Quinoa + Butternut Squash + Brussels Sprouts

Happy fall! One thing I love about this season is the food. Some of my absolute favorite foods are harvested and available in the fall - squash, Brussels sprouts, apples, pears, eggplant, kale and raspberries. Not to mention, with the temperatures dropping and the days getting shorter, it's totally acceptable to start cooking some comfort food favorites - bring on the homemade soups and casseroles.

Since we're still transitioning to fall and the temperatures haven't dropped quite yet, I experimented in the kitchen with an "almost fall" recipe. I was craving a dinner dish that had the perfect balance of hearty but light. I absolutely found it with this quinoa, butternut squash and Brussels sprouts dish.

The dish takes less than 40 minutes to make, and it yielded 3-4 days worth of meals. You could easily add a protein to this as well to give it a little more substance, but I promise you, it's good as is too!

|| Photo is property of Twentyapolis. Must give credit. Recipe adapted from Iowa Girl Eats. ||

Ingredients

Quinoa: 1 cup
Brussels sprouts: 3 cups chopped (or more if you love 'em like I do)
Butternut squash: 3 cups chopped
Vegetable or chicken broth: 2 cups
Brown sugar: 1 tablespoon
Olive oil: 1 tablespoon
Butter: 2 tablespoons
Pine nuts: 1/4 cup
Parmesan to taste
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Set the oven to 375 degrees. Chop brussels sprouts and arrange on baking tray. Drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Cook for 20 minutes, stirring in-between.

2. In the meantime, chop butternut squash. Heat butter in pan on the stove. Once the butter is melted, add brown sugar and butternut squash. Stir until caramelized and tender. 

3. During this time, bring the broth to a boil in a separate saucepan. Once the broth is boiling, add rinsed quinoa. Top the saucepan with a lid, and lower the head to simmer until quinoa has absorbed the broth, about 15 minutes.

4. Once the brussels sprouts, squash and quinoa are nearly finished, toast pine nuts in a separate pan, stirring frequently to avoid burning.

5. Once the brussels sprouts, butternut squash, quinoa and pine nuts are cooked, combine in a large bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste, and top with parmesan.

Enjoy!

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