Roasted Queen Squash with Sage

It's funny really, when you think that we tend to rely on huge amounts of starch to go alongside our food. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing more soothing than a buttery pile of soft mashed potato or a plate of Carbonara, but if you have it all the time it's nice to make a change.  

Lately I've been mixing it up a bit, roasting and mashing squash as an alternative to potatoes. It still fills you up, but is also soft and sweet and adds colour to your dinner. 

And there's no better time to try it, as shops start to stock all these lovely squash in the autumn - pumpkins, butternut, marrows and also this one - Queen Squash. I've roasted it in a little duck fat (but you could use olive oil if you like) with sage leaves, which turn crispy in the oven. Great with roast chicken and veggies, or stirred into a risotto. 

Roasted Queen Squash with Sage

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 Queen squash, peeled, seeded and cut into chunks about 3-4cm wide

1 teaspoon duck fat (or olive oil if you prefer)

salt

handful of fresh sage leaves

Method

Get your oven heated up to 200ºC. Tip the prepared squash chunks onto a large, shallow roasting tray and toss with the duck fat or olive oil (I find it's best here to use your hands). Sprinkle with a good pinch of salt and scatter over the sage leaves, tucking some of them inbetween the chunks of squash. Roast for 35 minutes, giving the squash a shake a couple of times during cooking. 

I've added this recipe to the Tuesday's Table link up on the Love in the Kitchen blog.