Roasted Kabocha Squash and Mushrooms on Cauliflower Rice with Moroccan Sauce
Serves: 6-8
Nothing, in my mind, says fall more than delicious, savory Kabocha squash soup with mushrooms and warming spices. For years, I bought dark green skinned squash in farmers markets and grocery stores. This year I grew my own kabocha squash, and to my surprise, they were orange in color. My farmer suggested it was time to harvest them. I protested and said, “they’re not ready, don’t they need to turn green?” She replied that the orange color is a different variety, and sweeter than the more savory dark green variety. That got me thinking that Moroccan spiced sauce with the sweet roasted Kabocha squash with mushrooms sounded like a good idea! Here is another delicious fall kabocha squash meal, sure to delight.
Nothing, in my mind, says fall more than delicious, savory Kabocha squash soup with mushrooms and warming spices. For years, I bought dark green skinned squash in farmers markets and grocery stores. This year I grew my own kabocha squash, and to my surprise, they were orange in color. My farmer suggested it was time to harvest them. I protested and said, “they’re not ready, don’t they need to turn green?” She replied that the orange color is a different variety, and sweeter than the more savory dark green variety. That got me thinking that Moroccan spiced sauce with the sweet roasted Kabocha squash with mushrooms sounded like a good idea! Here is another delicious fall kabocha squash meal, sure to delight.
Ingredients
(Combine all of the ingredients and store in a glass spice jar)
- 2 teaspoons cumin seeds, toasted and ground
- 2 teaspoons ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
- 3-½ pound orange kabocha squash
- 2 small green zucchini, halved lengthwise and sliced into ¼-inch pieces
- 1 pound baby bella mushrooms, cleaned, halved or quartered to ½-inch pieces
- 2 red onions, peeled and chopped into ¼-inch pieces
- 1 tablespoon honey
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 2 cups cauliflower rice from 1 large or 2 small cauliflower heads, leaves and core removed, separated in into buds, and riced in a food processor
- 1 cup white onion, chopped (about ½ large onion)
- 6 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 cups vegetable stock
- 1 large yellow beet, boiled until soft, skin removed, blended until smooth
- lime juice to taste
- freshly squeezed orange juice to taste
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
Directions
Preheat the oven to 400℉
- For the kabocha squash: place in the microwave oven for 3 minutes. Carefully (the squash will be very hot), using a dry kitchen towel, remove the squash and test to see if it is soft enough to slice off the stem. If not, microwave for another minute. Slice off the stem, and slice in half stem to stern. Remove the seeds and stringy parts of the squash. Using a peeler, remove the skin. Dice the flesh into ½-inch pieces and place in a large mixing bowl.
- Add prepared zucchini, mushrooms, and red onions to the kabocha squash.
- Sprinkle the vegetables with 1-½ tablespoons of the spice mixture and mix together with your hands, to coat the vegetables with the spices.
- Add 1 tablespoon of honey, and rub all of the vegetables making sure the honey is distributed evenly.
- Pour the vegetables onto a parchment lined sheet pan and place in the preheated oven. Roast for 20 minutes, flip over all of the vegetables with a spatula and bake for another 10 minutes. Check the kabocha squash with a paring knife to see if it is just tender throughout. If not, cook for a few more minutes until ready.
- Remove the sheet pan from the oven and place on a heat proof surface.
- Taste the vegetables and add more Moroccan spice and/or pepper, and a bit of juice from the lime and orange.
- Heat a 10-inch saucepan over medium high heat for 1-2 minutes. Pour the chopped onion into the pan and stir. Turn the heat down to medium low and allow the onions to release their juices. If needed, add a tablespoon or 2 of water or veggie stock to help the onion cook and prevent it from sticking to the pan.
- Once the onions are starting to become translucent, add in the minced garlic and stir for a minute or so until the garlic releases its aroma.
- Stir in 1 tablespoon of the Moroccan spice mixture and cook for 1 minute or until the aroma of the spices are is apparent.
- Add the vegetable stock, and bring the mixture to a simmer. Allow to cook for 3-4 minutes.
- Add the puréed beet and riced cauliflower to the sauce. Cook on medium low until the cauliflower rice is tender, about 5 minutes, adding more vegetable stock if the sauce becomes too dry.
- Add juice of ½ lime, and a squeeze of orange juice and give it a taste adding more citrus if needed.
- Spoon the cauliflower rice with its sauce on a serving platter. Top with the gorgeous colorful vegetables, and serve family style.
Cook's Notes: Make the dish ahead! The spices become even more pronounced! Place it in a casserole or oven proof dish and refrigerate for a day, or at most, two. It’s fine to mix the vegetables in with the cauliflower rice. Remove from the refrigerator an hour or before reheating. Place the casserole dish in a preheated 350℉ oven for 20 minutes or until warmed through.
