Simply Delicious!

As I got ready to watch the Indians face off in game 4 against the Red Sox a few weeks ago, my parents decided to make a guest appearance! They are never ones to come empty-handed, and this was no exception. My dad was on the phone ordering pizzas for my house as my mom unpacked all the game-time snacks they brought--peanuts in their shells (my dad swears he eats fewer when he has to crack each one open), candy corn, chips and pretzels galore, pumpkin cookies, and apples with my favorite caramel dip.

As my dad cracked open the case of beer and my mom mixed her favorite new concoction for me and her, I noticed the last thing in her bag of treats--a squash?

Yep. A butternut squash to be exact. I guess it was her latest craze--and something I just had to try. She brought fresh cut string beans as well, telling me about a delicious little recipe she had made and loved. It was simple:

-Dice one butternut squash into cubes. Place in a bowl with fresh cut string beans and chopped onion.
-Lightly toss in 2 tsp. olive oil, adding any seasonings of your choice (for lack of selection, I used garlic salt)
-Bake at about 350 degrees for about 30 minutes (stirring it at the 15-minute marker). The green beans and squash should be slightly browned and crispy.

I made it the other night with a bun-less veggie burger and man was it delicious! But not only is this dish tasty, it also packs a powerful punch of nutrition! One cup of cubed fat-free butternut squash serves up 82 calories, half your daily dose of Vitamin C, and more than four times your daily value of Vitamin A! The raw sweet onion weighs in at 47 cals per serving with the green beans adding 32 cals and 4 grams fiber per cup, while the olive oil (80 cals, 10 grams fat) dishes a healthy serving of monounsaturated fat and omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids.

Give it a try this holiday season-and let me know what you think!