Roasted Acorn Squash with Chile Vinaigrette

I have never made acorn squash before now - I don't know why. I've seen some great looking recipes and blog posts about it, but never have gotten around to trying it for myself. We got this recipe from a Gourmet Today cookbook that Michael's mom gave me for Christmas. We've made quite a few of recipes out of it and they all have been delicious - 5 stars worthy, really. We'll be posting a lot more from it soon! Anyways, this recipe is great. The vinaigrette topping is very powerful, so you only need a little to drizzle. We served the squash with a pork in chili tomato sauce - which is why it looks kind of soupy in the background. We'll be posting the pork recipe soon!

I always roast the seeds of pumpkins and butternut squash, so thought, what the heck, I'll try it with the acorn squash. Delicious! I hate letting things go to waste. Just save the seeds, rinse them, and top with a spritz of olive oil, a shake of salt, and broil for about 15 minutes. Watch them closely so they don't burn, and then you have a great treat to tide you over till dinner!

Ingredients

• 2 acorn squash
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 garlic clove
• 1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh hot red chile (about 1/2 a chile), including seeds
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Directions

1. Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 450F. Halve squash lengthwise, then cut off and discard stem ends. Scoop out seeds (save if you're roasting them!) and cut squash lengthwise into 3/4-inch-wide wedges.
   
2. Toss squash with black pepper, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and 2 tablespoons oil in a bowl, then arrange, cut sides down, in 2 large shallow baking pans. Roast squash, switching position of pans halfway through roasting, until squash is tender and undersides of wedges are golden brown, 25 to 35 minutes.
3. While squash roasts, mince garlic and mash to a paste with remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Transfer paste to a small bowl and whisk in lime juice, chile (to taste), cilantro, and remaining 1/4 cup oil until combined. Transfer squash, browned sides up, to a platter and drizzle with vinaigrette.