The sunshine has surprised all of us this fall, bursting forth frequently and with rare sincerity for this time of year. This past weekend it beamed over the Sunshine Coast, where we gathered with friends to celebrate Tara and Doug’s wedding. It glistened the ocean, dappled the trail beneath cedar trees, and warmed our walks along the shoreline.
And it made these small summer squashes all the more perfect when we found them on Sunday, tucked inside a deserted roadside produce stand. We chose the smallest ones, fist sized handfuls of sunshine from a stranger’s garden, place them on a scale, and dropped a few coins in a box in exchange.
On a fall night, this bright tasting recipe for Roasted Summer Squash and Shallots tastes of sun, Sunday and the small delights of an earlier season.
{MAKES} 4 generous servings
{INGREDIENTS}
Summer squash is the brilliant yellow cousin of your regular garden variety zucchini, and comes in a variety of sizes. Choose whatever you might find at your local grocery store or country roadside produce stand.
6 fist-sized summer squash (approx. 5C or 2 lb), each sliced into 6 wedges
3 small shallots, roughly sliced
2 cloves garlic, roughly minced
juice from 1 lemon
1 TB red wine vengar
1 TB olive il
1 tsp dried Herbes de Provence (or thyme)
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
{DIRECTIONS}
one. In a small bowl, mix together lemon juice, red wine vinegar, olive oil and herbs. Add salt and pepper to taste.
two. Toss summer squash, shallots and garlic together in a 9 x 13 glass baking dish.
three. Pour marinade over vegetables and toss to coat. Set aside for at least 1 hour and up to 1 day.
four. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Roast summer squash and shallots in oven for 40 minutes to 1 hour, tossing occasionally.
five. Brighten your fall table by serving these hot or at room temperature with roasted pork, chicken or fish. Leftovers are perfect pan-friend with an omelette the next day.
