Roasted winter squash with smoked bacon, poblano peppers, onions and toasted cumin seed..

Winter Squash, Roasted & Loaded

Split a firm, thick-walled winter squash lengthwise through the stem.  Remove seeds and pulp, oil lightly and season with sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper.

Place the squash halves into a skillet or onto a baking sheet along with half of an onion, half of a poblano,  half of a red bell pepper and additional chunks of peeled squash and roast at 400 degrees until the peppers are blackened.

The squash halves might need more or less time depending, but don’t let them cook until they collapse.  Remove from oven and let stand 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook diced, thick-cut smoked bacon in a heavy skillet with a spoonful of whole cumin seeds.  Add roasted vegetables, toss in some roughly-chopped fresh cilantro and taste for salt and pepper.  Add a little vegetable or chicken stock to keep things moist.

Place roasted squash halves on a plate and fill with the vegetable mixture.  Serve with charro or black beans on the side if you like.