Roasted Butternut Squash Mash with Brown Butter and Roasted Garlic

Butternut Mash

Ingredients

2 heads garlic
Avocado or olive oil (2 tablespoons)
Salt
Black pepper
4 pounds peeled and cubed butternut squash
2 teaspoons Italian dried herbs
4 tablespoons brown butter (*see recipe below)
2 teaspoons chopped, fresh rosemary leaves
1 tablespoon pomegranate seeds, as garnish (optional)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400°, and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Cut the tops off of the heads of garlic, drizzle with a touch of oil, and add a sprinkle of salt and pepper; wrap the heads tightly in foil and place onto the baking sheet and into the oven for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, toss the cubed butternut squash with about 2 tablespoons of oil, plus a good pinch of salt and pepper, as well as the Italian seasoning, and after the garlic has roasted for 15 minutes, pull the baking sheet out of the oven and add the seasoned butternut squash to it; place back into the oven (now you have both the squash and the garlic heads on the baking sheet) and roast for 30-35 minutes (the garlic will have roasted for a total of roughly 45-50 minutes by the end), or until the squash is tender.

While the squash and garlic roast, prepare your brown butter (see the recipe below), and set aside.

Once the butternut squash and garlic are finished roasting, mash the butternut squash very well by hand until completely smooth, or, use a potato ricer (my favorite for a silkier texture), and pass the squash through that and into a bowl.

Unwrap the garlic heads and squeeze the soft cloves from their papers; using a knife or even a fork, mash the cloves until they become a paste, and set aside for a moment.

To the butternut squash mash add 3 tablespoons of the brown butter, and additional salt/pepper, if needed; add in the roasted garlic paste, along with half of the chopped sage, and fold that in to combine; spoon the mixture into s a serving bowl, and drizzle the remaining tablespoon of brown butter over top as a garnish, along with the rest of the sage leaves and the pomegranate, if using.

Serve immediately while hot.

Brown Butter

Ingredients

1 cup unsalted, cold butter, cut into cubes

Instructions

Add the butter to a light-colored sauce pan or skillet, and allow it to melt—this takes about 2 minutes on medium-high heat.

Once melted, allow the butter to continue to cook, bubbling up and slightly “hissing”, stirring occasionally with heat-proof spatula for even browning; watch the color of the butter closely, as within about 3-5 minutes it will begin to take on a more golden color and a nutty aroma—that means you are close; when you stir and see the solids on the bottom taking on a brownish color, remove from heat and continue to stir for another moment or so until a nice, deep brown color develops to the solids; then, pour everything into heat-proof glass jar to cool, making sure to scrape all of those delicious brown bits in, as well.

Store at room temp if using immediately or within 24 hours, or in then in the fridge, covered tightly, if preparing a couple days ahead.