Healthy Spicy Squash Spread, Vegan

Are you tired of squash yet? You are probably thinking, "oh no not another squash recipe!" I promise this will be the last Kuri squash recipe and sadly it is also the last of my stash. Who knows maybe I'll pick up another when next time I see one at my local shop or perhaps I may be over my obsession. I don't know and can't make any promises.

Often times for breakfast, brunch or as a snack I like to have a slice of bread with some sort of spread. While I try to make healthy food choices when it comes to spreads it can very difficult to find a healthy, low calorie but still tasty spread. I am a label reader and many times readying all of the fatty ingredients and preservatives turns me off on certain spreads (and many foods). I'm not going to lie to you I will still purchase the fattier spreads but only once in a while. The other day I was really craving some bread with a creamy spread, but I wanted it spicy and the usual cheese spread was just not going to cut it. So this is what I came up with, a Healthy Low-Fat Spicy Squash Spread. Oh and a great plus to the recipe is that no animals were harmed in the making of the spread. It's Vegan! So I hope my Vegetarian buddies, Alisha (The Ardent Epicure) and Stella (The Witchy Kitchen) will appreciate my attempt. Is it weird if I dedicate this recipe to you lovely ladies? hm, well I do.

One last note I would like to add is that you could also just mix all of the ingredients instead of heating and cooking them. I get heartburn from raw garlic so I have to cook it before I can eat it. Raw garlic also burns my skin, does anyone else have this problem? OK, here is the recipe and hope you enjoy it. By the way I would like to apologize for my bad photos. No matter what I did I just couldn't get the color and light balanced, argh!

4 servings
Ingredients:
1 cup (220 grams) pureed squash
1 small carrot (40 grams) or 1 cup grated
handful chives, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp. salt, adjust to taste
pinch ground black pepper
chile flakes to taste, ( omit for a mild version)
2 tbsp. water
2 tbsp. olive oil

1. In a small saucepan heat the oil, then add the minced garlic and cook for 2 minutes. (Stir often to prevent burning.) Add the grated carrot and cook for 3 minutes to soften a bit, then add the chives and cook for a further 3 minutes. The chile flakes should be added next and mix until well combined. Lastly add the squash to the saucepan, stir and heat through. Sprinkle the salt and ground black pepper into the pan, stir until all ingredients are well combined. Remove from heat and allow to cool completely before serving. Allowing the spread to sit will also help all of the ingredients come together for a better tasting spread.


Keep in the refrigerator and use within a few days.

And to finish this post I want to ask you guys to stop by Sommer's blog, Momma With Flavor, see this mouthwatering photo below? This is Sommer's delicious recipe for Autumn 3 Cheese Macaroni made with Kuri Squash, yum!. She so kindly and sweetly said "she(Nancy) inspired me to find great potential for this squash. Her addiction...erm..love for this lovely winter squash literally made my mouth water. Then the recipe she produced made me want to try this even more! " Isn't she a sweetie? When I read this it totally made my day and put a much needed smile on my face, thank you Sommer. You guys really have to stop by her blog and take a look at not only her Mac& Cheese creation but all of her delicious recipes. She is a very talented foodie with a beautiful family that inspires her kitchen creativity, with fantastic results I might add.