Login Sign Up

Follow Nigella on: Facebook Twitter Vimeo Pinterest

BUTTERNUT SQUASH WITH PECANS AND BLUE CHEESE

BUTTERNUT SQUASH WITH PECANS AND BLUE CHEESE

Related Nigella Recipes

Related Community Recipes

Serves: 6-8

Print
  • Express Recipe
  • Gluten Free
  • Nigella Recipe
  • Vegetarian

This has many strings to its bow: it serves as a vegetarian alternative to the Christmas turkey; it gussies up a plate of cold leftover turkey; it adds the right balance of mellow warmth and tang to any plain wintry dish; it is a good whole meal on days when you just feel fleshed-out.

Have a look at Nigella's other simple Christmas side dishes or her complete collection of Christmas inspired recipes. 

Recipe posted by

Join in and share one of your own recipes

Add a Recipe

Ingredients

Switch to Cup Measures
  • 2 kilograms butternut squash
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 6 stalks fresh thyme (or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme)
  • 100 grams pecan nuts
  • 125 grams crumbled Roquefort cheese (or other blue cheese)
  • salt (to taste)
  • pepper (to taste)
NIGELLA EXPRESS

As featured in

NIGELLA EXPRESS

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 220°C/gas mark 7/425ºF.
  2. Halve the squash, leaving the skin on, and scoop out the seeds, then cut into 2.5cm / 1 inch cubes; you don't need to be precise, just keep the pieces uniformly small.
  3. Put the squash into a roasting tin with the oil. Strip the leaves from 4 stalks of thyme, and sprinkle over the butternut squash. (If you can't get fresh thyme, use dried.) Roast in the oven for about 30-45 minutes or until tender.
  4. Once out of the oven, remove the squash to a bowl and scatter the pecans and crumble the cheese over it, then toss everything together gently.
  5. Check seasoning and add the last of the thyme, torn into small sprigs to decorate.

Additional information - for vegetarians make sure that the blue cheese is one made with vegetarain rennet.

    Tried this recipe?

    Why not leave a comment or a suggestion?

    Please note, questions and queries for the nigella.com
    team cannot be answered here - please instead submit
    any questions as "Kitchen Queries".

    Add Comment

    • can you also add some other cheese if you don't like blue cheese?

      Posted by ecstlldfls on 5th Aug 2011 at 10.32

    • If you don't like blue cheese, how about adding monchego? Or dried cranberries if you are dairy intolerant?

      Posted by bemery26 on 11th Oct 2011 at 2.30

    • I made this for Thanksgiving, with two modifications. I added a roughly equal amount of cubed yukon gold potatoes, and a lightly roasted the pecans before scattering them into the dish. It was a big hit with the whole family.

      Posted by JeweledOne on 4th Dec 2011 at 5.49

    • Oooo, I'm going to make this today with substitutes and additions due to shortages. My take: Butternut Squash, Walnuts, Extra Creamy Danish Blue, Dried Thyme, and a RUMP STEAK done rare. I'm salivating at the thought.

      Posted by Churly on 29th Dec 2012 at 12.48

    • You can really turn up the volume of the sweetness and tang on this one by subbing the squash for sweet potatoes and the bleu for goat cheese.

      Posted by justinb on 28th Feb 2013 at 6.09