Yikes. That’s a long recipe title. I didn’t know how to shorten it!
“Harvest” simply means the gathering of crops in a season. Well, this season has brought plenty of Autumn vegetables to our local farmer’s market, and I’m determined to use all of them. During our customary Saturday morning trip to the market a couple blocks away, I stumbled upon kohlrabi near the beets. Holding up this vegetable by its green tops, I looked like a nervous magician, pulling a bunny by its ears out of a hat. What the heck is kohlrabi?
Seeing my quizzical face, Lu grabbed the bunny – er, kohlrabi – from me and asked the farmer to ID the vegetable. “Kohlrabi,” the farmer said, “it’s like a cross between a cabbage and a turnip.” Well, don’t mind if I do! Can you spiralize a kohlrabi? You will soon find out, dear readers, but for now, I’ve started off by cooking the green tips in this fall-themed bowl of pasta. They have a freshness similar to dandelion greens and a texture like swiss chard.
As for the rest of this dish, it’s an early Thanksgiving. Cranberries & ham? Check! The cranberries bring out the sweetness in the butternut squash. Basically, this is a stuffing with noodles. The diced ham is a nice surprise and pairs well with the salty feta. The pecans give this pasta the crunch it needs, while the roasted acorn squash pulls it altogether, giving it even more texture and flavor. You know what they say…. One can never eat too much fall squash!
All in all, I’m happy I found use for the kohlrabi greens and can’t wait to see if it spiralizes well. It’s sitting in my fridge next to the 56 peaches Lu picked. That man can eat so much fruit, it’s unreal…. I mean, he eats a full peach in three swift bites. Weird.
Have you found any interesting vegetables at the farmer’s markets lately?
Autumn Harvest Roasted Butternut Squash Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 acorn squash halved, seeds scooped out/removed
- 1 butternut squash peeled
- cooking spray
- 2 tbsp olive oil + more for drizzling
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 cup diced ham
- 1/2 cup crushed pecans
- 1 cup diced celery
- 1/3 cup dried cranberries
- 3/4 cup feta cheese
- 1 cup kohlrabi greens or other types of greens
- 3/4 cup chopped red onion
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Drizzle the cut-side of the acorn squash with olive oil and rub in. Place the squash cut-side down onto a baking tray coated with cooking spray. Place in the oven and bake for 35-40 minutes or until easily pierced with a fork. When done, set aside to cool.
- While acorn squash is roasting, take your peeled butternut squash and chop off the bulbous end. Spiralize the body, using Blade C.
- Place the spiralized noodles in a bowl and drizzle with olive oil. Mix together to combine and spread out on a baking tray lined with tinfoil. Season with salt and pepper and when the acorn squash is done cooking, place into the oven and roast for 5-7 minutes or until noodles soften. When done, take out and set aside.
- When you place the butternut squash noodles into the oven, place a large saucepan over medium-low heat and add in the 2 tbsp of olive oil.
- Once the oil heats, add in the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add in the red onion and celery. Cook for 2 minutes or until vegetables soften. Add in the kohlrabi greens, ham, and season with salt and pepper.
- When the noodles are done, add them into the saucepan with the cranberries and stir to combine.
- Plate the mixture into four separate bowls and top each evenly with feta and pecans.
- Take your acorn squash and cut each half into four pieces, lengthwise. Top each bowl of pasta with two acorn squash pieces.
- Enjoy!
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