Entertaining anytime soon? Here’s a little something that you might enjoy. Not entertaining soon? File this one away for your next cold season party!
This idea is adapted from Kiwi Magazine’s recipe by Jenna Helwig. I just love it and consider it the fall version of prosciutto-wrapped cantaloupe. Sweet and savory in all the right places, it’s been a favorite appetizer during the winter holiday season.
The delicate salty flavor of prosciutto is a rare indulgence at the Anderson household. Traditionally prosciutto is an Italian item, hence not necessarily a locavore ingredient. If you look around a bit, however, some good prosciutto is available locally, so enjoy!
The squash I’m working with is not a butternut, but a “neck squash”. I picked it up while grabbing my turkey from the Springdell farmstand on Wednesday. The neck squash itself is similar to a butternut, with juuuust a little less sweetness and creaminess. Why is it called a neck squash, you ask? Perhaps this is why?
Prosciutto-Wrapped Winter Squash with Sage
Ingredients
- 32 1-inch cubes of butternut or other winter squash
- 1 tbsp melted butter
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 32 small and tender sage leaves
- 1/4 pound of prosciutto, cut into 2 inch by 1 inch squares
- Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
Preheat the oven to 425.
- Line a rimmed cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- Combine melted butter and maple syrup and brush it on your squash cubes as you place them onto the cookie sheet.
- Roast squash cubes for about 25-35 minutes until just tender and with a little browning & caramelization starting . Allow them to cool completely before placing a sage leaf on top of each cube, then wrap each cube in a strip of prosciutto and secure with a toothpick.
- Bring the oven temperature down to 400 degrees and return the cubes to the oven for 8-10 minutes until the prosciutto crisps a little.
Notes-
- If you’re not achieving that crispness on the edges of your prosciutto, you can broil the appetizers for just a minute, but pay attention so as not to go overboard!
- Sage is a hardy herb that you’ll have a good chance of finding in the herb box until the snows land. If I can’t hit the farmstand the day I’m making these, I’ll soak the leaves in a bowl of water in the fridge to keep them moist until I’m ready to use them.
