Butternut Squash with Black Beans and Walnuts
Smoky, spicy and lightly sweet; this is a very easy and simple dish to make. With all the abundance of the pumpkins and the squashes in stores and the blogsphere, I could not resist making this even if I had to do it just for myself.
Before I move on, I wanted to bring in to light the Refrigerator Soup; not my refrigerator, not my soup, but a brand new place for the foodies to submit their awesome food photographs! Get over there and take a look, submit your delicious photos and get your posts reach out to a bigger audience. They publish 40 photos per day, have a featured spot for a chosen photo and do “20 Questions with out Favorite Blogger”. The publication of the photos are however not “guaranteed” like any other places, like Tastespotting and Foodgawker; they obviously have certain standards to meet. Overall it is pretty elegantly designed place.
Now back to where I was…
I still had had half of the butternut squash left after I made the soup. No one else is fond of pumpkins other than me as I have mentioned before, and I usually do not go overboard making something just for myself. But a sudden craving for all things spicy and gingery made me go for this one. I already had the beans soaked, the butternut squash sat ready to be used and I had to make lunch. So was this recipe born 😉
Butternut Squash with Black Beans and Walnuts
Ingredients:
- 2 Cups Butternut Squash/Pumpkin peeled and cubed
- 1 Teaspoon Cumin Seeds
- 1 Teaspoon Fresh Ginger, peeled and very finely sliced
- 1.5 Tablespoons Olive Oil (Or any cooking oil)
- 2 Hot Green Peppers
- 1.5 Cups Cooked Black Beans, drained (I had soaked the beans overnight and cooked in the pressure cooker; canned beans will work too)
- 1 Teaspoon Red Chili Powder/Cayenne (Optional)
- Salt
- Crushed Red Pepper
- Fresh Lemon
- 3 Tablespoons Lightly Toasted Walnuts
- Fresh Cilantro for Garnish
Preparation:Heat oil, cumin and hot pepper in a thick bottomed pan or skillet; when the seeds sizzle, add the ginger, butternut squash/pumpkin cubes. Increase the heat to high and cook the squash/pumpkins tossing them frequently till they are light brown on the sides.
Now add the beans, salt, red chili powder and 1/4 cup of water to the pan with the squash/pumpkin and cover and cook till the squash/pumpkin cubes are fork tender but firm.
Uncover and check to see if done. If there are any remaining water, increase the heat and let the water dry off. This is a dry dish. If done, add the crushed the red pepper and walnuts; toss to combine well.
Finish it off with some fresh lemon juice and fresh chopped cilantro/coriander.
Serve warm as a side.
We had ours with Roti (Indian Flatbread). I am proud to say that A gave this a try and liked it. DD2 ate a lot of it. DD1 did not care for the squash but loved the beans.
This one serves as a perfect side with Thanksgiving get together.
Related Posts:
Vegetables and Lentils with Ground Spices
Pics looks lovely.. love the contrast of all colors. Very wolesome side dish.
Butternut squash is a very versatile vegetable. Turns great in whatever dish it is added.
Beautiful dish and so healthy.
Very healthy, colorful and appetizing! A great idea!
Cheers,
Rosa
Such a lovely dish, very colourful and filling dish..
That looks delicious Soma! I must give it a try. I have half a squash sitting in my fridge, just waiting for some ideas.
What an unusual combination! Love the colors and flavors! I like butternut squash with chipotle 🙂
Great combination ! I might just try it since i have a 2-pound butternut squash and nowhere to go 🙂
I’ll like to have it as is. 🙂
I was wondering about some lemon juice … got it at the end. 🙂
The picture looks so beautiful, I bet the dish is delicious too!
Thankyou for the link will check them out.
Beautiful dish, llove the combo znd the addition of walnuts.
Beautiful dish.Never ever tried the combo.Looks perfect.Thanks for the link will check out.
Wow, so simple but really a beautiful dish!
What an interesting combination with butternut squash, beans & walnuts! Sounds terrific and I can’t wait to try it!
What a terrific blog you have. Photos are lovely and the recipes are wonderful and healthy. Thank you for sharing them.
If I were your neighbour I could have shared it with u…….b’coz same story in my house…i cooked pumpkin yesterday, now for another couple of weeks I can’t think about it, but the funny part is if hubby dear go for grocerries he’ll bring one for me…ha..& say make it for yourself u like it…….one extra thing to do now…
All the best people are cooking with butternut this week 😉 Looks delicious!
this looks really really good!
luckily in our house both of us are fond of pumpkins and the baby also gets his dose with his khichri. this looks nice, a must try for me.
Thnaks for visiting my space and for your encouraging words.
We love our squash up here – looks like a great dish, very healthy and colourful.
I don’t pick up butternut squash that often just because I am not sure what to do and then I like the Indian pumpkin at the Indian grocers more suited for the bangali ranna. But now I am going to pick up B. Squash for ourselves too 🙂
My family will adore this….I will surely cook this !
Oh, gee!! What an explosion of wonderful flavors and colors… smoky, spicy & a hint of sweetness …I’m sold 🙂
All the best,
Gera
Love this healthy wholesome dish. Great color, both delicious and beautiful.
This looks incredibly delicious! I love everything in it and have lots of squash to make it!
Wow, what a nice dish…love the colors in it…so healthy and yet filling 🙂
This seems like the ideal vegetarian dinner, hearty and full of protein. I am by no means a vegetarian but sometimes meals like this are just what I crave. I love forward to making this, thanks for such a great idea.
That looks delicious, Soma! I love beans…another great vegetarian recipe.
This sounds fantastic with the heat from the peppers and the sweetness of the squash. Great for a side dish or a vegetarian meal!
Squash and black beans ad a nice combo and this looks good!
I love all the ingredients you used… love the photos too 😉
so healthy & super delicious….
I must give this a try soon 🙂
This looks and sounds absolutely delicious! Can’t wait to try it out.
Hi Soma, tried out this recipe today. khub tasty hoyechhe aar eto beautiful colors esechhe. I also added a little roasted cumin powder to the squash for a slightly strong smoky flavor.
Interesting flavor combo Soma. Love it!!
I want to try this with sweet potatoes.
I think it would work out really well with sweet potatoes!