not pumpkin, but…

some kind of winter squash that I can’t remember its name, was the star player of Saturday night’s dish. Squash & Chic Pea Fiesta!  This dish is inspired by my good friend Jess who told me about the dynamite combo of onion, squash, dried fruit, and balsamic vinegar.  I took this combo and added a little to it. I love this dish!  This bad boy is slightly sweet and just tastes like fall. Yum!

up close and personal

In this fiesta:

the goods

the goods that didn't make the first photo

Serves: 3-5 depending on the eaters

Total time to make: 45 min (give or take)

In this recipe: 

• winter squash of choice
• a big bunch of dino kale (any kale or greens would work well)
• 1 small red onion
• 1 med honey crisp apple
• 1 15oz can of chic peas- my favorite brand of canned beans are Eden Organic because their cans are BPA free and they don’t add salt. You could obviously use dried beans after you have soaked and cooked them too.
• 1/3c dried curraants
• 1 large garlic clove
• 1T coconut oil
• 2T balsamic vinegar
• 1T maple syrup
• 1/8t ground, black pepper
• 1/4t sea salt
• 1t graham masala
• 3/4c water

How to

1.  slice squash in half, remove seeds, then cut into smaller pieces
2. cut up the onion and apple to smaller pieces
3. mince garlic
4. put coconut oil in large saute pan for 30 seconds on med heat
5. add onion and garlic to oil for 3-4min, Stir occasionally on med heat
6. add squash, maple syrup, balsamic vinegar, spices and about 1/4c of water. stir and keep on med heat for 10-15 min
7. add apple and currants, stir and keep on medium heat for another 5-7 minutes
8. chop kale in to smaller leaves- you probably should remove the stem, but I didn’t
9. add kale, drained an rinsed chic peas, and 1/2 c water.  Stir and reduce heat to a simmer for 2-5 minutes

I made these delights for dessert:

heaven

Unfortunately, I do not have a recipe for these.  Jess (the same friend mentioned above) makes these a lot and I have seen a couple of similar recipes on other blogs, so I just kind of made this recipe up by combining all recipes.

I can’t give you the exact measurements because I didn’t measure, but I can tell you what is in them and that they are darn good and good for you. I will make them again and measure, so you can sample these delights.

• sunflower butter
• almond butter
• raw cacao
• raw coconut that I toasted
• ground flaxseeds
• sea salt ( the bigger chunks-this is key)
• dates
• coconut milk
• raw honey

Happy Halloween!!