Roasted Butternut Squash and Spinach with Toasted Almond Dressing

Active time: 20 min
Start to finish: 1 1/4 hr
Yield: Makes 6 first-course servings

Ingredients:

• 1 (2- to 2 1/4-lb) butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/2-inch cubes (4 cups)
• 5 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3/4 cup whole almonds with skins (3 1/2 oz), very coarsely chopped
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 lb spinach, coarse stems discarded (10 cups)

1. Preheat oven to 450°F.
2. Toss squash with 1 1/2 tablespoons oil in a shallow baking pan and spread cubes in 1 layer. Season with salt and pepper and roast in middle of oven, stirring once halfway through roasting, until squash is just tender and pale golden, about 30 minutes total. Cool in pan on a rack until warm, about 15 minutes.
3. While squash is roasting, cook almonds in remaining 4 tablespoons oil in a 10-inch skillet over moderately low heat, stirring constantly, until golden, about 3 minutes, then season with salt and pepper. Pour almonds and oil into a fine-mesh sieve set over a large bowl and cool until warm, about 10 minutes.
4. When almonds and oil have cooled, whisk lemon juice into oil in bowl until combined well, then season with salt and pepper. Add squash, spinach, and half of almonds to dressing and toss gently to coat.
5. Divide salad among 6 salad plates and sprinkle with remaining almonds.

RESULTS: Lately I've been contemplating the way recipes are named. You can have recipes that, like this, say exactly what is in the dish, including how the ingredients are prepared. Or, you can name it something like, say, "varenikis". What the heck is this? I don't know. But it sure sounds exciting, doesn't it? I wonder if anyone has done some sort of pseudo-scientific study looking at whether people at fancy restaurants are more likely to order food with an esoteric name versus a name that very clearly and common-sensibly states what it is. An interesting corollary to this study would be looking at whether it makes a difference if the name of the dish is in French or Italian. Coq-au-vin sounds very posh, but it really means chicken in wine, or something normal like that.

Anyhoo, this dish/warm salad--despite it's long and descriptive normal name in English--is very good, and dare I say it, rather elegant. And healthy! Spinach, squash, and almonds! I actually followed the recipe to the letter, if you can believe it. I actually weighed the squash and the spinach to make sure to get the right amount, but I think as long as there's enough dressing, you don't have to be that careful. It's a deceptively large amount of work for just five ingredients, though, so don't embark on it if you're fainting from hunger. Also, don't forgo the almonds, they really make the dish. The cookbook recommends adding some blue cheese on top; a little bacon would probably also be good.