roasted butternut squash and sweet potatoes with a lemon tahini dressing

I was looking for a side to pair with some spinach pie (another recipe for another day) and decided that I needed something more than a simple green salad. I decided that another vegetable would work well, and its really hard to resist sweet potatoes and butternut squash when Trader Joe's cuts them all up for you in little perfect cubes (hello, time saver!). So that's how I landed on this recipe.

On another note, if you don't have a proper roasting pan, I suggest you add one of those bad boys to your holiday wish list. I used to do most of my vegetable roasting on a sheet pan, but that clean up is a bi...really annoying. The non-stick roasting pan I use now makes for an easy clean up. I also love that it has nice tall edges so I can shake my veggies around mid roast without any spillage. 

Back to the pretty orange taters and squash... 

Here's what you'll need...

1 lb butternut squash cubed in bite size pieces

1 lb sweet potatoes cubed in bite size pieces

1 small red onion, cut into thick slices (about 1/2 inch)

1/4 cup slivered almonds 

handful of fresh parsley, chopped 

3 tablespoons olive oil 

1 1/2 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

dressing

2 tablespoons tahini

1 tablespoon water

juice from half a lemon

1/2 tbsp dried oregano 

Here's what to do... 

Heat oven to 400 degrees. 

Add cubed butternut squash, sweet potatoes, and onion to a roasting pan. Coat with olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast for 20-30 minutes, until squash is tender and caramelized slightly on the outside. Stir through vegetables once or twice while roasting to insure even cooking. 

While vegetables are cooking, mix dressing ingredients in a bowl and whisk to combine. 

Once the roasted vegetables are done, plate and top with parsley and almonds. Drizzle tahini dressing over the top and serve. May be served warm or room temperature.