Fall Vegetarian Meal
You guys, my most favorite month of the year is upon us! October is full of warm autumn smells, crispy golden leaves, little ones anticipating the most fun night of the year and excited to show off their costumes. Personally, it’s always been a great month of reflection and contemplation for me as well. I love to take autumn walks and just ponder life… where I have been, where I am going, and what I need at the grocery store. 😉 Seriously though, I have to agree with L.M. Montgomery who wrote, “I am so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.” For me, it’s a time of rest and reflection and generally the time of year where I best take care of my health, perhaps due to the amazing harvest foods. Speaking of the all bounty, today I am joining 26 other bloggers to share some delicious fall recipes with you. I was so excited to start breaking in my new cookware from Cuisinart, and creating this healthy fall vegetarian meal gave me the perfect reason. Today I am going to share with you a recipe I created for a butternut squash and sun dried tomato frittata as well as a fall salad with apples, figs, roasted beets and a maple dijon vinaigrette. My mouth is watering just typing that! I’m joining several other bloggers sharing their fall recipes as well today, so be sure to check them out at the bottom of this post. This blog uses affiliate links.
Butternut Squash & Sun Dried Tomato Frittata with Fall Salad
As I mentioned here, I was stoked to have cookware that was oven safe and I couldn’t wait to break it in to make this frittata! Butternut squash is in season now and my absolute favorite fall vegetable so I grabbed the opportunity to create a meal with it. I am going to take you step by step through everything that we did, but you can also find a simplified version of the recipe at the bottom of this post. Let’s start with the frittata since I made that first, and I threw the salad together once it was in the oven.
Before beginning, I preheated my oven to 400 degrees.
Next I used my large skillet from my cookware set and put it on the range on medium, and added two tablespoons of olive oil and allowed that to heat up.
Once the oil was heated, I added 1 medium diced shallot. This step gives the frittata a lot of flavor. If onion isn’t your thing, you could always substitute some sort of herb like sage. I allowed the onion to cook for a few minutes, stirring occasionally.
Next I added my cubed butternut squash. A small squash is perfect for this recipe. Mine was large, so I ended up saving some to make a second meal later in the week. You’ll want to cube the squash and have it prepared and ready to go right in. Before I began cooking, I used my new Cuisinart knives to get my squash cubed. Let me tell you, these knives are glorious! The handles are comfortable and the slicing and dicing is finer than fine!
Once the squash was added to the pan, I placed a lid on top to allow it to steam and cook a little faster. The glass lid allowed me to see what was going on which was fabulous! I stirred it just once about midway between the 8 minutes that I allowed it to cook.
Meanwhile, white that cooked, I prepared the rest of the frittata ingredients. In a large bowl I whisked together 8 eggs with 1/4 cup of whole milk, and added in salt and pepper to taste. I also sliced my sun dried tomatoes, using half of one small jar, about 3-4 oz. You can buy these pre-sliced, but I was using what my husband found at the grocery store so mine needed slicing, which I didn’t mind with my new knives.
After the squash was finished cooking, I removed the lid and spread the vegetables evenly in the bottom of my pan, and poured the egg mixture on top, with the pan still on medium heat. I allowed it to start cooking around the edges for a few minutes.
After letting it cook a bit, I evenly placed my sliced sun dried tomatoes and crumbled goat cheese throughout the frittata.
Next, I placed it in my preheated oven at 400 degrees. Because this pan is really light weight compared to the cast iron pan I used to use for frittatas, it was SO easy to transfer to the oven. I let that bake around 10 minutes, until the egg was set. (You should see no more fluid and it should be softly firm (meaning just firm and not too jiggly!) I was thrilled with the outcome in this pan… Typically, to be honest, my frittatas have had a bit of a dark crust, slightly charred. This frittata came out better than any I have ever made, and even Chris agreed. As you can see, I was pleased when it came out of the oven!
While the frittata was in the oven, I got to work on my salad. Now, this salad does have roasted beets which I roasted and set aside. I simply cut them in to small pieces, spread them evenly on a pan, sprinkled olive oil and salt on them, and baked at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes until they just started to crisp a bit. I did this before, because I didn’t want them to hit the salad when they were hot and wilt any of the greens. I just wanted to mention that because you will want to have your beets roasted and ready before moving on with the rest of the salad.
In a large bowl I combined about 6 cups of mixed greens. I buy bagged power greens because Wilder has a smoothie every morning, but you could use whatever greens float your boat. I then quartered 4 figs and tossed them on top. Again, these knives are pretty much a dream come true for us. This one was perfect for cutting the figs.
I also used that knife to cut one apple for this salad. I used an underripe golden delicious that was green, because that’s my personal preference, but you could also use a granny smith. Once the apple was cut, I added it to the top of the salad along with the roasted beets.
Lastly, I added blue cheese crumbles to the top. Now, blue cheese is strong so how much you add is a personal choice. We like it in our house, so I went a little heavy handed with it.
After I had all of my salad vegetables, fruits, and cheese together, I mixed a dressing with maple syrup, dijon mustard ,olive oil, apple cider vinegar, and salt. I used a fork to mix it all together, and then poured it evenly on top. As you can see, my dogs are always under my feet in the kitchen. 😉
Now, I know some of you are asking, “Cassie… be honest. Did your kids really eat this?”
And the answer is… NOT EVEN CLOSE. We tried to get them to even take a bite of fig… no way. So once I was done cooking the grown ups meal, I got another skillet from my cookware set out and made them grilled cheese. I just wanted to keep it real here with you. I will say, this pan cooked them so evenly and they were so delicious that I had to make them seconds. Bread, cheese, and butter evenly and perfectly cooked… what is not to love?!?
Anyhow, let’s get back to the real meal and star of the show here today, the frittata and salad!
Now, before I tell you that I thought it was delicious, let me tell you a little bit about our typical dinner conversations in our house. Every time I create a new meal and I ask Chris what he things, the answer goes like this 99% of the time. “It was good, but what I would do differently next time… ” Can you feel my eyes rolling right now? He’s trying to be helpful, I know.
This time there was none of that utterance. He went back for seconds and told me how good it was! He loved the frittata and we agreed that it was the most evenly cooked and best frittata I had ever made, and we both attributed that to the pan. As for the salad, he loved that as well, had seconds of that, and complemented my dressing. I can’t even begin to tell you how good I felt. I was all set to sign up to be a cooking show contestant; that’s how good. I also want to add that since making this frittata, I’ve repeated it with other ingredients in place of the sun dried tomatoes. I used grilled corn once and baby bella mushrooms on another occasion and both came out really well. The corn may have been my favorite!
Here are the recipes for you in an easier to follow format.
Butternut Squash & Sun Dried Tomato Frittata
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 medium shallot, diced
- 1 small butternut squash, cubed (about 1.5 c)
- 8 eggs
- 1/4 c. milk
- 4 oz sun dried tomatoes, sliced or julienned
- 2 oz goat cheese
- salt & pepper to taste
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Heat olive oil in an oven safe 9″ skillet on medium heat
- Cook shallot in heated pan for about 3 minutes until translucent, stirring occasionally.
- Add cubed squash to pan and cover with lid. Cook for about 8 minutes, stirring halfway through. Squash should be tender and easily pierced with a fork
- While squash is cooking, whisk together 8 eggs, 1/4 c. milk, salt & pepper to taste.
- After squash is cooked, remove lid and add egg mixture in and allow to cook still on medium heat for a couple minutes.
- Place sliced sun dried tomatoes evenly on top, and sprinkle goat cheese evenly on top.
- Transfer to the oven and bake about 10 minutes, until the frittata is just firm to the touch and there is no visible liquid.
- Allow to cool a bit before cutting and serving.
Fall Salad with Maple Dijon Vinaigrette
- 6 c. greens
- 1 apple, cubed (granny smith or underripe golden delicious)
- 4 figs, quartered
- oven roasted beets* (recipe below)
- blue cheese to taste
- 1.5 Tbsp maple syrup
- 1.5 Tbsp dijon mustard
- 1/4 c. olive oil
- 1/8 c. apple cider vinegar
- salt to taste
- Place greens in a large salad bowl.
- Place chopped apples, quartered figs, and cooled roasted beets on top.
- Sprinkle with blue cheese to taste.
- Whisk last 5 ingredients together in a small bowl to create the dressing.
- Pour evenly over salad, toss, and serve.
*To oven roast beets, cut them in small bite sized pieces, spread evenly on a sheet pan, sprinkle with olive oil and salt, and bake at 400 degrees for about 15-20 minutes, until just starting to crisp.
I hope you enjoy this meal as much as Chris and I did, and I hope there is nothing you would do differently next time. 😉
Finally, be sure to check out all of the amazing fall recipes that are being shared today… it’s a feast for the eyes! Get ready to wipe the drool from your mouth, preheat your oven, and get to work in your kitchen.
Today I’m joined by a talented group of blogging friends who are also sharing their Fall Recipe ideas with you! Just click on the links below the images to be taken to see their full post…
Instant Pot Split Pea & Ham Soup at The Happy Housie
Chicken Tortellini with Pumpkin Alfredo at Grace In My Space
Tomato and Goat Cheese Dip at My Sweet Savannah
French Onion Soup in a Breadbowl at My UnCommon Slice of Suburbia
Chicken Lasagna Soup at The Handmade Home
Easy Overnight Breakfast Casserole at The Turquoise Home
Butternut Squash & Sundried Tomato Frittata at Cassie Bustamante
Pumpkin Spice Granola at Craftberry Bush
Saskatoon Berry Muffins at Love Create Celebrate
Quick Sugar Free Applesauce at Aratari at Home
Mason Jar Pumpkin Pies at Modern Glam
Easy Pumpkin Dip at She Gave it a Go
Fall Brioche at Inspiration for Moms
Baked Apple Cider Donuts at Paint Me Pink
Instant Pot Pumpkin Applesauce at Cherished Bliss
Pumpkin Spice Granola at Zevy Joy
Plum Frangipane Dessert at Satori Design for Living
Pumpkin Pie Cream Cheese Ball at Tatertots and Jello
Pumpkin Spice Snickerdoodles at The DIY Mommy
Apple Cannon Balls at In My Own Style
5 Minute Flaky Pie Crust at Jenna Kate at Home
Pumpkin Spice Cake with Brown Sugar Glaze at Sincerely, Marie Designs
Pumpkin Cheesecake Swirl Brownies at A Pretty Life
Yummy S’Mores Cheese Ball at This is Our Bliss
Pecan Madeleines at Life is a Party
Keto Low Carb Pumpkin Crisp at Summer Adams Designs
Pumpkin Nutella Swirl Bread at Clean & Scentsible