Recipe | Hasselback Squash with Chestnuts, Pancetta & Mushrooms

Photography by Kirstie Young

Serving a winter squash whole, or at least virtually intact, really brings home how majestic a vegetable they are. This roasting technique gives them maximum surface area to caramelise for extra deliciousness.

Serves 4

1 large winter squash (approx. 2kg whole weight)
6 bay leaves
4 thyme sprigs
25 sage leaves
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
4 fat garlic cloves, unpeeled
180g vacuum-packed chestnuts
250g pancetta
1 tsp thyme leaves, chopped
200g mix of wild and cultivated mushrooms

1 Preheat the oven to 185C/Fan 165C/Gas 4-5. Halve the squash lengthways and scoop out the seeds. Turn both halves cut side down, then use a very sharp knife to slice 1cm slits in the flesh across the squash, taking care not to cut all the way through. I like to place a wooden spoon on each side of the squash to stop my knife before it reaches the chopping board.

2 Transfer to a baking tray, cut side down. Stuff the bay leaves, the sprigs of thyme and 10 sage leaves into the slits then drizzle with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and season generously. Roast the squash for 1 hr.

3 After an hour, add the garlic cloves and chestnuts to the tray and return to the oven for a further 15 mins.

4 Meanwhile, heat the remaining tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil in a frying pan over a medium-high heat. Add the remaining sage leaves and fry for 2 mins, turning halfway, until they stop fizzing, which means the water has cooked off. Remove from the heat, drain, and leave to cool on kitchen paper, where they’ll turn crispy. Set aside.

5 Next, in the same frying pan, fry the pancetta over a medium heat for 5 mins. Add the chopped thyme and the mushrooms, tearing any large ones as you go. Turn the heat up a touch and fry for 5 mins more.

6 By now the squash, chestnuts and garlic should be ready, so remove the tray from the oven. Tip the chestnuts into the pancetta, squeeze the flesh from the garlic skins and stir into the pancetta mixture.

7 Lift the squash onto a serving dish. Tumble the pancetta mixture over and around the squash, then top with the crispy sage and serve.

Cook’s note: This can be made vegan by replacing the pancetta with chopped hazelnuts.

This recipe is from our November Tales From the Veg Patch pages, in which Kathy Slack cooks up a seasonal feast. The other recipes include Smoky Squash Beans & Chorizo Stew, Quick Squash Chips with Herby Mayo and Rye Spiced Pumpkin Loaf.

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Recipe | Roasted Squash Polenta

SERVES 4 (as a side with leftovers, or two as a main)

1 large or 2 smaller squash, such as Butternut, Crown Prince or Kuri (approx 1kg)
1 bulb of garlic
A handful of fresh herbs such as rosemary, thyme and bay ~
1.5ltr chicken or veg stock
2 tbsp butter
12 sage leaves (optional)
200g instant cook polenta
75–100g freshly grated cheese, such as parmesan or a nuttier, creamier, fondue-style cheese, like gruyère

1 Preheat your oven to 200C/Fan 180C/Gas 6. Put a roasting tin in the oven, on the top shelf, to warm up.

2 Carefully halve your squash. Scoop out the seeds and discard (or save for roasting or grow to make pumpkin microgreens). Season the squash. Halve the garlic bulb horizontally. Tuck the garlic halves and herbs in the ‘bowl’ of the squash. Slide into the oven and roast for 45 mins, or until the squash is tender and nicely coloured. Check a few times during cooking. Remove the garlic once it’s squeezably tender as it may finish cooking before the squash.

3 Once the squash is cooked, bring your stock to a simmer in a saucepan. Scoop the squash flesh out, discarding the herbs. Squeeze the roasted garlic from the skins. Mash the squash and garlic with the back of a fork; set aside.

4 Heat a large saucepan or pot. Add 2 tbsp butter. Gently fry the sage leaves in the melted butter until just crisp. Remove the leaves with a fork, leaving any residual butter in the pan.

5 Add the polenta and half of the simmering stock to the sage buttered pan or pot. Whisk until smooth, slowly adding more stock until it’s a nice texture – like a creamy maize porridge. Fold in the mashed garlicky squash and most of the grated cheese. Add more stock to ensure a smooth, creamy consistency, as needed.

6 Take off the heat if it thickens too quickly. Pour the polenta into dishes or on to a platter. Top with crispy sage leaves, extra pepper and the remaining cheese.

Cook’s note: While heavenly with autumnal game or red meat dishes, you could also serve this as a vegetarian main (just check that your cheese has vegetarian rennet).

This polenta recipe is from our regular Home Economics series by Rachel de Thample. The feature includes a recipe for Polenta Gnocchi, which you can make with the leftovers from your roasted squash polenta, as well as a raft of ideas using autumnal venison, mushrooms, hazelnuts and more.

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