Side Dishes

November 15, 2021

Roasted Honeynut Squash with Smokey Pomegranate Sauce

Roasted honeynut squash halves make perfect individual portions and add an adorable, seasonal dish to your holiday table! Paired with Smokey Pomegranate Sauce, this recipe is sure to impress. 

I am in love with honeynut squash this fall! When I first saw them, I immediately squealed in cuteness overload, and despite having a pantry full of winter squash from my own garden, added them to my cart. These deeply orange, petite squash are fairly new to the market, it turns out. Some quick research revealed that they are a hybrid developed by Cornell University plant breeders in collaboration with Chef Dan Barber. Honeynut squash were developed specifically for their flavor, and it does not disappoint. Once roasted, the honeynut squash have a nutty, earthy, malty sweet flavor. For me, it’s the texture that sets them apart from other winter squash - the flesh is firm yet silky, with less water than other winter squash varieties. These are definitely being planted in my garden next year!

I paired my roasted honeynut squash with Smokey Pomegranate Sauce, inspired by a Middle Eastern dish known as muhammara, Muhammara is a dip made from roasted red peppers, walnuts, and pomegranate molasses. It’s sweet and spicy and tangy - just an incredible blend of flavors! Muhammara is traditionally made with aleppo pepper, but I’ve swapped in a pantry-staple ingredient, smoked paprika. The smoked paprika adds to the smokiness of the roasted red peppers, and it’s a flavor I can’t get enough of. 

The one unusual ingredient here is the pomegranate molasses - and it’s worth seeking out. This sauce is not the same without it! I have found pomegranate molasses at my local natural foods store, but you may also find it in an international aisle of larger grocery stores. (Or you can make your own by reducing pomegranate juice into a thick syrup - that’s really all it is!) Once you have your pomegranate molasses, try adding it to vinaigrettes for salad, stirring it into hummus, or adding it to sparking water to make you own soda. 

I hope you’ll try these Roasted Honeynut Squash with Smokey Pomegranate Sauce for your next holiday dinner! They’re sure to please a variety of palates, from meat-eaters and omnivores, to plant-based and vegan friends alike. Use leftover Smokey Pomegranate Sauce as a spread on a sandwich (so good on a grilled cheese!), or as a dip with crackers or vegetables. 

Ingredients assembled for Roasted Honeynut Squash with Smokey Pomegranate Sauce
Assemble your ingredients.

Stages of prepping and roasting the honeynut squash
Start by getting the squash into the oven to roast.

Ingredients for Smokey Pomegranate Sauce in a food processor, first unblended, then blended and smooth
While the squash is roasting, make the Smokey Pomegranate Sauce in a food processor.

A hand holding a bottle of pomegranate molasses
Look for pomegranate molasses at natural foods stores, or in international aisles of larger grocery stores.

A white platter with roasted honeynut squash filled with Smokey Pomegranate Sauce and sprinkled with pomegranate arils
Once squash have roasted, transfer to a serving platter. Place a generous tablespoon of Smokey Pomegranate Sauce in the hollow of each squash, and garnish with pomegranate arils (optional), and serve!

A single Roasted Honeynut Squash with Smokey Pomegranate Sauce
Seriously - just how cute are these bbs??!

Roasted Honeynut Squash with Smokey Pomegranate Sauce

Roasted honeynut squash halves make perfect individual portions and add an adorable, seasonal dish to your holiday table! Paired with Smokey Pomegranate Sauce, this recipe is sure to impress.

Author:

Kira Freed - The Joyful Plateful

Prep:

5

min

cook:

45

min

total:

50

min

Ingredients

4 honeynut squash

1 Tbsp. olive oil

Pinch of salt and pepper

16 oz. jar roasted red peppers, drained, patted dry

2/3 cup walnuts, toasted

2/3 cup breadcrumbs

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

3 Tbsp. pomegranate molasses

2 tsp. smoked paprika

3/4 tsp. kosher salt

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1 clove garlic, peeled

Juice of 1/2 a lemon

Pomegranate arils (optional, for garnish) 

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Line a large sheet pan with parchment paper or silicone baking mat, and set aside. 
  2. Cut the honeynut squash in half (top to bottom) and remove seeds from each half. Brush cut sides of each squash with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place squash halves cut-side down on the lined sheet pan, and roast in the oven at 425 degrees F for 45 minutes. Squash should be tender and caramelized when done. 
  3. While the squash are roasted, make the Smokey Pomegranate Sauce. In the bowl of a food processor, place drained roasted red peppers, toasted walnuts, breadcrumbs, olive oil, pomegranate molasses, spices, garlic clove, and lemon juice. Blend until smooth, stopping at least once to scrape down the sides. 
  4. Once the squash are done, transfer to a serving platter, cut side up. Place a generous tablespoon of Smokey Pomegranate Sauce in the hollow of each squash. Garnish with pomegranate arils (optional). Serve immediately. 
Thanks for contributing to our community! Your comment will appear shortly.
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.
March 19, 2024
Hannah
Sounds sooooo yummy. I will definitely prepare this