squash thai curry

Squash is a great vegetable to store and use through the fall and winter.

Serving Size: 8

Ingredients:
4 c. roasted "permanent" squash, cubed (or any winter squash for that matter)
1 c. red lentils dry, 2 c. cooked
1 T. canola oil
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 T. ginger, minced
1/2 t. cardamom, ground
1/4 t. cumin, ground
1 t. garlic, minced
2 c. water
1 12oz. can coconut milk
1 t. Thai red curry paste
2 1/2 T. lemon juice
4 T. frozen cilantro leaf cubes, minced
salt and black pepper to taste

2 c. basmati rice dry, 6 c. cooked

I think that is is nice to roast squash a night or two in advance especially if you can double task it with making steak fries or cupcakes. Roasting squash is pretty simple. Cut the squash in half. Scoop out the pulp and seeds. Save the seeds so that you can roast them like pumpkin seeds. Lightly salt the insides of the squash. Place the two halves of the squash face down on a cookie sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes until tender but not mushy. Allow to cool. Cut into more manageable wedges. Remove the outer skin and cube. This recipe only uses about half of the roasted squash. You can use the rest of the squash immediately for a pureed squash soup or save that idea for another week by freezing the leftover cubes.

Cook the basmati rice. Cook the red lentils.

In a large pot, sautee the onion, ginger, cardamom, cumin and a dash of salt in oil until the onion is translucent. Add garlic and saute for another minute. Add water, coconut milk, lemon juice, frozen cilantro, cooked red lentils, and roasted squash cubes. Cook on low allowing the mixture to simmer. Dissolve the curry paste in a measuring cup with the warm coconut milk mixture and add it back to the pot. Add salt and pepper to taste. Allow to simmer for 10 minutes.