Great side dish for the holidays! Roasted cubes of butternut squashed tossed with balsamic sautéed onions, kale, pecans, dried cranberries.
Looking for a great holiday side? How about a drop dead delicious, healthy kale and squash sauté that is surprisingly easy to put together?
Roast cubes of butternut squash so they get tasty caramelized edges. While roasting the squash, prep the onions and kale and then sauté them with balsamic vinegar, adding the squash, pecans, and cranberries at the end. Simple. Beautiful. Packed with flavor and color.
The balsamic vinegar? It’s what makes all the difference. The sweet tartness just intensifies the flavors of the onions, squash and kale.
Oh yeah, it’s also vegan. It may even be paleo (if you swap out the sweetened dried cranberries with raisins).
Every year we try to come up with at least one sparkling holiday side that will wow your guests. This year this is it. I’m making it for our Thanksgiving dinner and hope you do too!
Roasted Butternut Squash Kale Sauté Recipe
- Prep time: 10 minutes
- Cook time: 40 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4
Time saver: while the squash is roasting, prep the other ingredients.
To make ahead, roast the cubed squash and prep the ingredients, then do a quick sauté before serving.
Ingredients
- 4 cups 3/4-inch cubes of butternut squash (from about 1 3/4 pound whole small butternut squash)
- 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- Sprinkling of black pepper
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large red onion, quartered and sliced (about 2 cups of sliced red onions)
- 3 cloves garlic, minced (about 1 Tbsp)
- 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- 6 cups thinly (3/4-inch) sliced kale (center ribs removed) (from about 1 bunch of kale)
- 1/3 cup dried sweetened cranberries
- 1/2 cup slightly broken up pecans
- Salt and pepper to taste
Method
1 Roast cubed butternut squash: Preheat oven to 425°F. Place cubed butternut squash in a bowl and toss with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper. Spread out onto a lined baking sheet. Roast in oven for 25 minutes or until the squash is cooked through and browned on the edges.
2 Sauté onions and garlic: 15 minutes into roasting the butternut squash, start on the onions. Heat olive oil on medium high heat in a thick-bottomed 4 to 5 quart pot. Add the sliced red onion and toss to coat. Let cook for 7 to 8 minutes until softened. Add the garlic and cook a minute more.
3 Add balsamic and kale: Add the balsamic vinegar and the shredded kale. Stir until the kale is mixed well with the onions (it helps to use tongs to turn over the kale). Let cook for a minute or two until the kale is just wilted (don’t overcook).
4 Add roasted squash, dried cranberries, pecans: Then stir in the roasted butternut squash, the dried sweetened cranberries, and pecans. Add salt and pepper to taste.
