Acorn squash is in season during the Fall and Winter. These babies are quite versatile, a few of my favorite ways to prepare them are to bake and fill them, bake then mash them, or straight up roasted. Okay, I confess, my favorite way to prepare and eat acorn squash is to roast and I even eat the skin because it becomes soft enough to do so and it’s just so good.

Start with one or even two whole acorn squash. Remove the sticker and wash the outside. Scrub with a veggie cleaning brush if you have one. Then break out a really sharp kitchen knife. I encourage you to sharpen your favorite kitchen knife before taking it to the squash, it’s got a tough exterior!

Start by cutting a little off the bottom, then you have a flat end of the squash. Carefully, cut in half, you may need to rock the knife back and forth to get it into the squash and keep your hands and fingers out of the way. BE very careful! I cannot stress the enough! Once the squash is in half, scoop the seeds out. You can set aside for later and roast the seeds as well. About.com has a great recipe to try.

Take each half and place cut side down. Use the ridges in the acorn squash as guidelines to cut into wedges like shown. Place on a backing sheet and brush with a high heat oil such as coconut oil or grapeseed oil. Season with your favorite spices, below I used Himalayan sea salt, black pepper, and dried basil. Roast for 35 minutes at 400 degrees or until soft.

Arrange on a plate and serve!

Roasted Acorn Squash

Ingredients:

1 or 2 whole acorn squash

1 T. coconut oil

1t. dried basil

Sea salt and black pepper, to taste

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Remove sticker and wash acorn squash.

3. Break out your sharpest kitchen knife and even take a minute to sharpen it, this will make cutting the acorn squash much easier.

4. Carefully, cut the bottom stem off of the squash, this will give you a flat surface.

5. Sit the squash on the now flat bottom and carefully cut in half. Be careful to keep your fingers and hands out of the way.

6. Once the squash is cut in half, scoop the seeds out. You can set aside for later and roast the seeds as well.

7. Take each half and place cut side down. Use the ridges in the acorn squash as guidelines to cut into wedges.

8. Place on a backing sheet and brush with a high heat oil such as coconut oil or grapeseed oil. Season with your favorite spices, such as Himalayan sea salt, black pepper, and dried basil.

9. Roast for 35 minutes at 400 degrees or until soft.

10. Enjoy!