What could be better showstopper on your Thanksgiving table than this honey glazed hasselback butternut squash! It looks festive, it tastes festive, and this dish sure won my heart. And guess what – this dish is NOT all sweet, it has a nice kick to it as well making it well balanced.
First start off by slicing whole butternut squash into half lengthwise. Try to keep both the half of exact size for even roasting.
Scoop out all seeds from squash using a spoon or melon baller. Do not waste seeds, you can roast these butternut squash seeds (once it’s cleaned) with salt and cinnamon powder and little olive oil. Roasted squash seeds are a great healthy mid meal snack.
Peel off the skin using vegetable peeler. Alternatively you can leave skin on if you don’t mind the extra crunch, but I prefer to remove skin as it also makes it easy to make hasselback slices.
Place squash on baking tray greased with olive. Brush with olive oil. Sprinkle salt and pepper. Rub with hands to spread salt and pepper evenly over squash.
Roast hasselback butternut squash in pre heated oven at 425F for 15 minutes.
Pro-Tip : Note every oven behaves differently. Roasting time will vary based on your oven and also size of the squash.
Do not roast squash completely. We only want to roast is half way so it becomes easy to make neat seeming hasselback style slices. Have an eye on your squash to ensure you don’t roast it fully.
Meanwhile in a bowl whisk honey, butter, lemon juice, salt and pepper, smoked paprika, fresh thyme (chopped), fresh sage (chopped) and mustard.
Remove tray from oven and let it sit at room temperature to cool down a bit you can to handle squash to make slice cuts.
Once cooled enough, transfer squash onto chopping board.
Kitchen hack to make perfect hasselback style cuts -
Place 2 wooden handled spoons on either sides of the squash. You can even use 2 chopsticks. This will ensure that you don’t cut the slices all the way through. The wooden handle spoons acts guards and prevents you knife from going all the way through the squash.
Using a sharp knife, cut slits 2 or 3mm apart in the squash, cutting almost but not all the way through.
Transfer hasselback style cut squash back to baking tray. Brush with honey-sage sauce generously. Make sure to coat well and between the slices as well.
Roast butternut squash halves for 20 to 25 minutes generously brushing the sauce 2 to 3 times between the bake time. Also baste the squash with liquids from the baking tray every 8 to 10 minutes.
Once roasted, remove baking tray from oven. Transfer hasselback butternut squash onto serving plate. Garnish with chopped nuts and few fresh sage leaves. Sprinkle kosher salt on top. Serve!
Notes
Roasting/baking time may vary depending on your oven and the size of squash. Keep an eye on the squash while roasting. You want butternut squash slices to be cooked but firm!