FoodMayhem

I’m really into roasting potatoes with some fennel and sweet bell peppers and when I’m not serving vegetarians, little bits of ham or some bacon can add some smoky saltiness. Then one day, I wanted to turn that side dish into more of a meal. I crumbled some sausage in instead of the ham/bacon and threw an egg on top. Last weekend, my cousins came over and I mentally prepared to make that dish but when I started prepping, I realized we were out of potatoes. I dug through my fridge and thought maybe butternut squash would work. It did! The added sweetness counters the saltiness of the meat perfectly and the pop of orange color makes the whole dish so vibrant. I now wanted to write a recipe and post it so badly. I had more of all the ingredients except for the Italian sausage. That’s when another swap happened. This time I tried it with chorizo.

That’s the long story version of saying this is a very versatile dish. A detailed recipe is given for those that want to follow it to the T. You will love it! For others, use any color of bell pepper you’d like: red, orange, yellow, green. You can even throw in some hot peppers. For those that don’t like fennel, substitute onion. When butternut squash is not in season, use potatoes. Instead of chorizo, you can crumble hot or sweet Italian sausage, or use bacon. I might even try kielbasa next time. This hash, in all it’s possible forms, is a beautiful breakfast or brunch to serve with some runny eggs. Add crusty bread if you want it to be even more filling.

Chorizo and Butternut Squash Hash
~4 servings

• 2 1/2 cups medium to large dice butternut squash
• 2 teaspoon brown sugar
• 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons vegetable or grapeseed oil
• 1 cup small dice fennel
• 2 cups medium dice chorizo
• 1 1/2 cup small dice green bell pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• kosher salt and pepper to taste

• 4 to 8 eggs (poached or sous-vide) to serve
• crusty bread to serve (optional)

Instructions –

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

2. Toss butternut squash, brown sugar, olive oil, and kosher salt together in a medium bowl. Spread in a single layer on a sheet pan lined with aluminum foil. Roast until tender and golden, about 20 minutes. Set aside.

3. In a large cast-iron skillet, heat vegetable/grapeseed oil on medium heat. Add fennel with a pinch of salt and stir to coat with oil and cook for 2 minutes. Add chorizo and toss with a spatula until it let’s out oil, about 3 to 4 minutes. Continue stirring and cooking for another minute. The chorizo will start to brown.

4. Add green pepper, garlic, and onion powder. Stir/toss for a minute. Add roasted butternut squash and toss until evenly combined. When green peppers are tender, adjust salt and pepper to taste and it’s done.

5. Serve each portion with 1 or 2 eggs on top depending on how hearty you want the meal to be.

 

posted by jessica at 11:49 AM Filed under American, Recipes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.