Butternut squash and leeks, oven roasted in a honey-bacon glaze and finished with blue cheese crumbles and crispy bacon - the savory sweet-and-salty flavors of this surprising combo will blow you away! Serve as a main dish or hearty side.
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What's the Story Behind this Recipe?
Some years ago, while on our annual Valentine's weekend in Hood River (Oregon), Mr. B and I took a hike in the Columbia Gorge, and afterwards popped into Solstice Wood Fire Pizza down by the waterfront for some lunch.
Maybe it was the sunshine, or maybe the hiker's high (which I doubt, mostly because we went on the easiest hike ever); but whatever it was, we were absolutely swept away by Soltice's BLBB Pizza. It was easily one of the best wood-fired pizzas either one of us had ever bitten into.
The BLBB comes topped with a savory, fall-inspired mix of butternut squash, leeks, bacon, and bleu cheese. The the rich, savory-sweet-and-salty flavors of this surprising combination absolutely blew us away! I just wanted to wrap myself up in a piece of that pie and never come out.
In an effort to capture all that savory goodness and keep the memory alive, we created this roasted butternut squash recipe using the same basic ingredients and flavors as the Solstice pizza, but with a little more flexibility in the delivery system.
Speaking of flexibility, this roasted butternut squash recipe is so versatile! In addition to being a delicious, hearty main side dish all by itself, it can be used to create many unique dishes, with rice, pasta, tacos, eggs, etc. Even pizza.
What Goes into this Recipe
The basic ingredients for this roasted butternut recipe are clean and simple.
Ingredient Notes & Substitutions
★ Butternut squash: Butternut squash tastes a little like nutty sweet potatoes, with overtones of butterscotch. You can sub in any orange or yellow winter squash for the butternut.
If you don't want the hassle of cubing the butternut, you can often find cubed butternut squash in Costco's refrigerated fresh vegetable section.
★ Bacon: Use good-quality, thick cut bacon for best results.
★ Leeks: Leeks add sweet, mild, oniony flavor to the mix. Mild sweet onions or shallots may be substituted.
★ Blue Cheese: Use a good-quality bleu cheese. Feta and goat cheese both make good substitutes in this recipe.
How to Make this Recipe
Preheat the oven to 400°F | 205°C. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
How to Cube a Butternut Squash
To prepare the butternut squash, first (A) cut off the top and bottom, and then (B) cut it in half horizontally where the narrower top meets the wider bottom. Use a vegetable peeler to peel the squash top and bottom (C). Cut the bottom of the squash in half and scoop out the seeds (D).
Once the squash is cut and cleaned, cube it into ¾- to 1-inch cubes. Set aside.
Prepare Leeks
To prepare the leeks, begin by cutting off the roots and the darkest part of the green tops. This will leave you with a white stalk and light green leaves; like a giant green onion.
Cut each leek in half lengthwise. At this point, fan the leaves and rinse the leeks well, as they tend to trap a lot of sand and debris.
Cut the cleaned leeks into ¾-inch pieces, and set aside.
Skillet to Sheet Pan
In a large cast iron skillet, cook bacon pieces over medium heat until crispy.
Uncured bacon doesn't render the same way cured bacon does. If you use uncured bacon, put a tablespoon or two of neutral oil (i.e., canola, light olive oil) in the skillet before adding the bacon pieces.
When the bacon pieces are crisp, remove the skillet from heat, and remove the bacon to a small dish. Set aside.
To the drippings remaining in the skillet, add the butter, honey, and hot sauce, and whisk to combine, stirring constantly until the butter melts completely.
Add the cubed butternut and cut leeks to the pan and toss to coat them thoroughly with the honey-bacon mixture. Season with salt, pepper, and paprika and toss again.
Pour the butternut and leeks onto the parchment-lined baking sheet.
Roast in preheated oven until the vegetables are tender and edges of butternut start to darken; about 30 minutes. Use a flat spatula to turn the mixture halfway through.
Remove the butternut mixture to a serving dish. Sprinkle with the cooked bacon pieces and crumbled bleu cheese.
Season to taste with additional salt, pepper, and/or paprika, and garnish with thin slices of fresh leeks.
Serving Suggestions
In addition to being a delicious, hearty main side dish all by itself, there are many other ways to enjoy this versatile butternut recipe. Here are just a few:
- Serve it over rice.
- Toss it with pasta.
- Fold it into a tortilla.
- Use it as an omelet filling.
- Top it with a poached egg.
- Use it as a pizza topping!
FAQs & Expert Tips
You can tell if your butternut squash is ripe by the color and texture of the outer rind. Avoid choosing squashes with green spots: they are not ripe. The squash skin should be hard, with a matte texture and even color.
More Squash Recipes
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Roasted Butternut Squash with Bacon & Leeks
Equipment
- 1 Parchment Paper or silicone mat
Ingredients
- 1 medium butternut squash 2-3 pounds
- 2 large leeks 3 medium; 4 small
- ¼ pound thick-cut bacon 3-4 strips; cut into ½-inch batons
- 1½ tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1-2 teaspoon hot sauce
- 2 ounces crumbled blue cheese or feta, or goat cheese
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon sweet paprika
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F | 205°C.Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
Cube the Butternut Squash
- To prepare the butternut squash, first (A) cut off the top and bottom, and then (B) cut it in half horizontally where the narrower top meets the wider bottom. Use a vegetable peeler to peel the squash top and bottom (C). Cut the bottom of the squash in half and scoop out the seeds (D).
- Once the squash is cut and cleaned, cube it into ¾- to 1-inch cubes. Set aside.
Prep the Leeks
- To prepare the leeks, begin by cutting off the roots and the darkest part of the green tops.
- Cut each leek in half lengthwise. At this point, fan the leaves and rinse the leeks well, as they tend to trap a lot of sand and debris.
- Cut the cleaned leeks into ¾-inch pieces. Set aside.
Roast the Vegetables
- In a large cast iron skillet, cook bacon pieces over medium heat until crispy.
- When the bacon pieces are crisp, remove the skillet from heat, and remove the bacon to a small dish. Set aside.
- To the drippings remaining in the skillet, add butter, honey, and hot sauce, and toss to combine.
- Add the cubed butternut and cut leeks to the pan and toss to coat them thoroughly with the honey-bacon mixture. Season with salt, pepper, and paprika and toss once again.
- Pour the butternut and leeks onto the parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Roast the vegetables in a preheated oven until they are tender; 30-40 minutes. Use a flat spatula to turn the mixture halfway through.
- Remove the butternut mixture to a serving dish. Sprinkle with the cooked bacon pieces and crumbled bleu cheese. Season to taste with additional salt, pepper, and/or paprika, and garnish with thin slices of fresh leeks.
Notes
- Serve it over rice.
- Toss it with pasta.
- Fold it into a tortilla.
- Use it as an omelet filling.
- Top it with a poached egg.
- Use it as a pizza topping!
Nutrition
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. You are solely responsible for ensuring that any nutritional information provided is accurate, complete, and useful.
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Originally published February 25, 2015. This post has been updated with new content, images, and recipe instructions to improve reader experience.
Mary @ Fit and Fed says
That pizza does sound amazing, as does your veggie dish. I'd make the option without the bacon, maybe with some toasted sunflower seeds (doesn't really sub bacon--- what does-- but the toasted sunnies would be good).
Bonnie says
I love leeks and I love butternut squash! Adding in bacon might get my non-squash eaters interested. 🙂
kelsey says
that looks so good! i love leeks!
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Emma Lincoln says
This is definitely going on the cooking list. I haven't been to Solstice, but it sounds amazing.
Holly says
Ok, I need to make this asap! I am also very intrigued about the pizza you mentioned. I know where I'm stopping next time I'm in Hood River!
Mischa {Accidental Farm Wife} says
Seriously so tempted to go to the grocery store right now in the snow to get butternut squash so I can make this recipe! I love everything about this…especially the goat cheese!
Marlynn [UrbanBlissLife] says
So glad you had a great Valentine's weekend! Solstice is delicious, and this dish looks delicious too! Love the leeks and bacon combo with the butternut squash.
Renée ♥ says
Thanks, Marlynn! I like that it is so easy to adapt for everyone too - vegetarians, vegans, paleo eaters - whoever. Just a minor recipe tweak and there you go.