Enjoy this tasty and simple dish as a part of your Thanksgiving dinner or any other time of the year.

This dish is one of our family’s all-time-favorites! I make it often as it is a great side dish for chicken and pork. I believe this recipe comes from the New York Times’ Cooking section and I saw it several years ago when watching Live! With Regis and Kelly. It was their Thanksgiving week and Kelly was cooking it in her kitchen. I gave it a try and have been making it since. A few years ago roasted Brussels sprouts and butternut squash with pecans became a staple during our Thanksgiving dinner.

The sweetness of butternut squash is nicely balanced by Brussels sprouts. Pecans give some crunch and become even more flavorful when roasted. Fresh thyme, like every fresh herb, makes the dish more lively. It is so simple! A few ingredients and so much flavor.

A couple things to remember when roasting vegetables: use a shallow baking dish – this way the hot air can circulate better and roast the vegetables instead of steaming them; cut the vegetables into similar size pieces so they will roast uniformly; don’t overcrowd a roasting pan, again, you don’t want to steam your veggies.

If you are going to serve this dish for Thanksgiving dinner, you can prepare it the day before, store covered in a fridge and roast before serving. It reheats well, so you can cook it earlier and warm up later.

To cut the squash, using a solid knife, halve it lengthwise, then halve each piece across. Place each piece flat side down and cut the skin off. Next, remove seeds and visible fibers. Cut the squash pieces into 3/4-1 inch wide cubes. Place in a large bowl.

Trim the Brussels sprouts and halve the big ones. You want both vegetables to be cut into similar size pieces. Add the sprouts to the bowl. Stir in 1/3 -1/2 cup pecan pieces. Sprinkle chopped fresh thyme, salt and pepper. Pour in 1/4 cup good olive oil. Stir well. Bake in oven preheated to 450 degrees for about 40-45 minutes, until the vegetables are soft (but not mushy) and brown spots are visible. Serve hot.

Serves: 6-8                   Prep time: 20 minutes              Ready in:  1hr

Ingredients:

• 1 medium butternut squash, cut into 3/4 to 1 inch cubes
• 1 lb Brussels sprouts, ends trimmed, large ones halved
• 1/3 to 1/2 cup raw, unsalted pecan pieces
• 1.5 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2. Quarter the squash, peel,  scoop out the seeds and fibers. Cut the prepared squash into 3/4 to 1-inch long pieces. Trim the ends on Brussels sprouts. Place in a large bowl, add pecans, thyme, salt, pepper and olive oil. Stir well. Transfer to a large, shallow baking dish or roasting pan.
3. Roast for about 40-45 minutes, stirring occasionally,  until vegetables are tender and brown spots are visible. Serve hot.

Enjoy!