Grilled butternut squash and onions with feta, dill, and spices

The Story

This grilled butternut squash and onions with feta, dill, and spices dish came about on a random Tuesday when I stood in front of a small handful of random ingredients. I really didn’t want to go to the store, and I was determined to make something outside of my usual repertoire. I stood in front of a whole butternut squash and my mind automatically went to a soup or a puré. But it’s actually an extremely versatile vegetable that stands up to a variety of cooking methods.

Knowing I didn’t have much going on in my pantry and refrigerator besides the typical ingredients I always have on hand like onions, garlic, honey plus a couple of things in the refrigerator, I relied on the cooking method and some heavy hitting whole spices to impart a lot of flavor. The grilling adds smokiness, while the mixture of spices, honey, and black garlic come together super quickly in a really yummy vinaigrette. If you don’t have any black garlic, don’t worry! Use a clove of the fresh stuff for an equally delicious rendition.

Perfect for a weeknight, this butternut squash and onion dish is a great side to serve with a piece of fish or chicken (like my pan-roasted spiced chicken thighs) or works great at a potluck or tapas style dinner.

Difficulty: 1 on a scale of 1-5

Active time to prepare: 30 minutes

Total time to prepare: 30 minutes

Serves: 4

The Ingredients

For the grilled butternut squash and onions with feta, dill, and spices:

1 large butternut squash cut into .5”/1.25 cm planks, sliced in 2 or 3 pieces (larger bite-sized)

1 large onion cut into 1”/2.5 cm slices (starting at the root and ending at the stem)

2 Tbsp. + 1/4 cup/28 g + 56 g olive oil

1 Tbsp./7 g caraway seeds

1 Tbsp./7 g fennel seeds

1 Tbsp./9 g sesame seeds

1 tsp./3 g red chili flakes

3 - 4 cloves black garlic finely chopped

2 Tbsp./42 g honey

Juice of one lemon

2 Tbsp./30 g minced dill

4 ounces/112 g feta cheese

Salt and pepper

The Recipe

For the grilled butternut squash and onions with feta, dill, and spices:

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Season with salt.

2. Drop in the pieces of butternut squash, lower the heat to a simmer. Cook until just shy of fork tender (6 - 8 minutes). Drain and dry with a paper towel.

3. Drizzle the sliced onion and blanched butternut squash with the 2 Tbsp./28 g of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.

4. Cook on both sides on a grill or grill pan over high heat until slightly charred (3 - 5 minutes per side). Set aside.

5. Heat the 1/4 cup/56 g olive oil in a small pan. Add the spices and black garlic. Cook over medium heat until fragrant and the seeds start to pop (3 - 4 minutes). Pour into a bowl.

6. Add the honey, lemon juice, and dill. Stir to combine.

7. Add the grilled butternut squash and onions. Gently mix with the dressing, ensuring to not break up the pieces too much.

8. Crumble the feta cheese on top.

DO AHEAD: You can assemble the dressing without the dill up to 7 days in advance. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Bring to room temperature before using and then add the dill.

LEFTOVERS: Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.