Ok, let’s get started: honey-glazed butternut squash marinated with a delicious dressing and then cooked in your own outdoor oven! Life is good. Start by peeling the skin from the butternut, chopping the butternut in half. Take out all the seeds using a spoon. Place both halves on a baking tray flat side down and bake them for about 20 minutes at a low heat, around 220°C. There should be only small flames in your oven. If the oven is cooling down too much, just add very small pieces of wood so you can keep the flames low.
During these 20 minutes, you have time to make that delicious marinade. Chop your herbs and mix ¾ of them with honey, mustard, oil, pepper, and salt. Next, take out the butternut, let it cool for a few minutes, take your knife, and start making incisions into the butternut, cutting down all the way until your knife hits the tray. Cut the whole butternut into slices about 3 mm thick. Rub 1/3 of the honey mixture onto your butternut squash, also between the cuts, then add a splash of water to your baking tray, about 10 tablespoons. Place the butternut back into the oven and bake it for 30 more minutes at 200°C.
You will continue adding water during the bake to prevent the butternut from drying out. Check on the butternut every 5 to 10 minutes. Brush some of the dressing-water combination over the butternut; if there is very little moisture left in the pan, add a splash of water. Also, make sure to turn the tray every 10 minutes.
And voilà, after 30 minutes you have made yourself a delicious wood-fired smoky butternut squash. Serve it on a plate and top it off with the rest of the honey mixture, pecan nuts, and salt & pepper to your liking. Enjoy!
By Pieter Städler
