Roasted Butternut Squash Crostini

I generally love Hallowe'en but for some reason this year I am just not into it. I usually like to get out my giant styrofoam skull and put it on my lawn along side our grave markers and scattered miscellaneous bones and body parts. Normally my bony skeleton hand candles would be lining my pathway already but for some reason this year I am "meh" about Hallowe'en. Not entirely sure why.

So to shake out the cobwebs (ok....I needed to get a seasonal reference in there) and get myself in the mood for the most wonderful holiday of the year, I have decided that I must cook something orange. I was disappointed that my organics box did not contain any kind of squash, so today I picked up some butternut squash which I intend to turn into a spread for an appetizer. It is sort of kind of orange. Ish.

I have made butternut squash ravioli with sage brown butter in the past with great results, so I think that is the direction I am going to go in. I will just de-construct the recipe to its basic elements, and turn it into a spread instead of a ravioli filing.

1 pound butternut squash, peeled and sliced
1 tbsp olive oil
4 tbsp chicken stock or vegetable stock
1 clove garlic, purred
10 fresh sage leaves, sliced
3 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
A small pinch of nutmeg (I actually have a nutmeg grater and prefer to grate it fresh into dishes)
1 french baguette, thinly sliced on an angle.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400°F. Arrange squash on a greased baking sheet and bake until tender, approximately 45 minutes. Let cool, then transfer to a food processor and whir until smooth, adding chicken or vegetable stock as needed to facilitate pureeing until all incorporated.

Add in the parmesan cheese, fresh sage and nutmeg, and whir again to combine. Season with salt and pepper. At this stage the recipe will hold for at least a week. You can serve it at room temperature or warm it slightly before serving.

When ready to use, lightly brush bread all over with oil, arrange on a large baking sheet in a single layer and toast in the oven, flipping halfway through, until just golden and crisp, 8 to 10 minutes total. Spread over warm crostini and serve.

Man, this turned out really well. Very, very simple but the flavours meld together so well. The parmesan cheese (sorry James) really adds a buttery undertone to the pureed squash. The sage is subtle - because it is fresh - and adds a wonderful earthiness to the spread. Dried sage can be very strong and pungent, so I recommend fresh for this dish because the herb is used raw. And the hint of nutmeg just pushes the fall flavours of this creation to the top. 

Just looked up sage on http://www.herbexpert.co.uk and it says that sage has been used as a healing herb since the Dark Ages. Apparently the ancient Greeks and Romans used sage as an antidote to snakebites and brewed into a tea to relieve headaches.

Just a thought but if you are one of those people who likes blue cheese (I am definitely one!) you could crumble a bit of blue cheese on top of the crostini and put under the broiler for a few minutes before serving?