Candy and bitter in Italian cooking, or agrodolce, has roots that predate the Romans, however credit score Sicily- and the North African affect on their delicacies – with protecting it alive.

Sicilians slather a primary combination of vinegar and honey on grilled meat and fish. They flip roasted eggplant into caponata with a model of it dressed up with alliums, raisins and herbs. And typically they add nuts and chilies for a textured condiment that hits most, if not all, of the notes on the flavour spectrum.

The latter is what we had in thoughts for this acorn squash in our e-book “Cook dinner What You Have,” which pulls on pantry staples to assemble straightforward weeknight meals. It couldn’t be simpler to organize and can make an ideal vegetarian aspect dish for the vacations.

Because the sliced squash roasts within the oven – you don’t even have to peel it – we construct a tangy-sweet sauce with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, honey, Dijon mustard, rosemary, purple pepper flakes and raisins. The mustard, although unconventional, provides an additional sharpness to steadiness the honey and pure sweetness of the nutty vegetable.

As soon as the squash is almost cooked, we end it with the agrodolce combination so it takes on a glaze-like luster within the oven. Ready so as to add toasted almonds as a garnish retains their crispness for textural distinction to the velvety squash.

Acorn squash is right for this recipe as a result of the pores and skin is edible (or simply peeled off after roasting for those who want). Butternut squash additionally works, however it is going to must be peeled.

Agrodolce acorn squash

Begin to end: 1 hour

Servings: 4 to six

Elements:

1½- to 2-pound acorn squash, halved lengthwise, seeded and sliced into 1-inch-thick half rings
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
Kosher salt and floor black pepper
½ cup balsamic vinegar OR cider vinegar
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon dried rosemary OR dried thyme
½ teaspoon purple pepper flakes
¼ cup raisins
¼ cup entire almonds, roughly chopped OR slivered almonds OR sliced almonds, toasted

Instructions:

Warmth the oven to 475° F with a rack within the center place. On a rimmed baking sheet, drizzle the squash with 1 tablespoon oil and sprinkle with ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper. Toss till properly coated, then distribute in a fair layer. Roast till the squash is browned on either side and a skewer inserted into a chunk meets no resistance, 25 to half-hour.

In the meantime, in a small bowl, whisk collectively the remaining 3 tablespoons oil, the vinegar, honey, mustard, rosemary and pepper flakes, then stir within the raisins.

When the squash is finished, take away the baking sheet from the oven. Pour the vinegar-raisin combination onto the squash, distributing the raisins evenly, then roast till the liquid is effervescent and syrupy, 5 to 7 minutes.

Utilizing a large steel spatula, switch the squash to a platter. Drizzle with the glaze from the baking sheet and sprinkle with the almonds.

Non-obligatory garnish: Recent flat-leaf parsley OR pomegranate seeds OR each

Get extra recipes and dinner concepts from The Washington Occasions meals part.