Great Fall Side Dish: Butternut Squash with Wilted Spinach and Blue Cheese

My mom snipped this recipe out of her local paper, The Asbury Park Press, and we made it the night before Thanksgiving to accompany our grass-fed sirloin.

We cut the butternut squash into small cubes, tossed with a little olive oil and salt and pepper, and roasted it at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes.

For the dressing,  we used gorgonzola which I prefer to blue cheese.  You really need to spend some time mashing the cheese and lemon juice together to render a smooth dressing.  We found that we did not need the entire amount of dressing for the dish.  Tim used the extra for his steak!

I thought this dish had a really unique combination of flavors and was perfect for a fall night!

Butternut Squash with Wilted Spinach and Blue Cheese
Asbury Park Press

• 1/4 cup blue cheese or gorgonzola crumbles
• 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
• 1 1/2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 small red onion thinly sliced
• 1 5-ounce package baby spinach
• 4 cups cubed and roasted butternut squash (warmed if roasted in advance)

In a large bowl, use a fork to mash together the blue cheese and lemon juice to form a thick, smooth dressing.  Season with salt and pepper; set aside.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add onions, salt, and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown (about 5 minutes).  Add spinach and cook tossing frequently until slightly wilted and warm (about 1 to 2 minutes).

Toss contents of skillet with the roasted butternut squash and dressing.