Even squash haters like roast squash, especially of the delicata and acorn varieties. When these beauties are in season I like to occupy my entire oven with their sliced presence, roast until their skin bursts golden and adorn every meal with a touch of fall.
Just go ahead and drool all over the computer…it’s okay, really. The star of the show here is the tahini lemon sauce, creamy smooth sesame tahini is such a versatile ingredient. This sauce is not only great on salads and vegetables but also really nice with grilled chicken or white fish, as a dipping sauce for roasted potatoes and yam fries, added to vegetable soups or just smothered on a chunk of sourdough. Make a big batch and save moola on pre made salad dressings, seriously if you are into having a lower grocery bill then you need to start making your own dressings and sauces. The pre made stuff is not only expensive but usually loaded with additives, preservatives and unhealthy oil like canola and soy (yes, even the organic ones!).
Tahini is a power food, it’s higher in protein than most nuts and packed with important minerals like calcium, magnesium, potassium (potassi-yum!) and iron. Seeds are a lot easier to digest than nuts, you don’t have to soak them forever to make them more absorbable which is a huge timesaver. Sesame is one of the most nutrient rich seeds you could eat. I sprinkled some black sesame seeds on the salad, which are really high in iron AND they look cool, right?
- 1 acorn squash, cut into ½ inch slices
- 1 delicata squash, cut into ½ inch slices
- 1 beet, cut into ½ inch slices
- a few radishes, sliced
- a handful of cherry tomatoes
- small chunk of feta
- a few handfuls of local greens- lettuces,kale,arugula- you name it!
- 2 Tbs. Tahini
- 1 whole lemon, juiced, seeds removed
- 2 Tbs olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 Tbs honey
- 1 tsp worcester sauce or 1 anchovy filet
- ½ tsp sea salt
- generous amount of fresh cracked pepper
- Preheat oven to 400F
- Lay out the squash and beets on a roasting tray and drizzle with a bit of olive oil and a sprinkle of sea salt. Bake for 45 min. turning halfway through.
- In a blender or food processor, add the tahini, lemon, garlic,honey,worcester, salt and pepper and blend until smooth and creamy.
- Assemble the greens on a large plate or in a large mixing bowl, top with your veggies, roasted squash, beet,crumbled feta and a generous amount of tahini sauce.
