Roasted Butternut Squash and Red Onions with Tahini

Roasted butternut squash and red onions tossed with dates, chickpeas, and a tahini sauce in a serving bowl.

5 from 1 vote

Roasted Butternut Squash and Red Onions with Tahini

This roasted butternut squash and red onions recipe is packed with flavor and is a perfect weeknight sheet pan main dish or simplified for a side dish. This hearty dish is both vegan and gluten-free. The roasted chickpeas, lemony tahini sauce, and roasted chickpeas can all be made ahead.

Prep Time15

Cook Time30

Total Time45

Course: Vegetarian Dinner

Cuisine: Middle Eastern

Keyword: roasted butternut squash and red onions

Servings:

Calories: 438.5kcal

Author: Susan Pridmore

Equipment

Ingredients

Roasted Vegetable Dish

14.5 ounce can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed or 1 ½ cups cooked from dried chickpeas
½ large butternut squash
1 large red onion
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
½ teaspoon kosher salt or ¼ teaspoon sea salt
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
4 pitted dates quartered lengthwise
4 teaspoons za'atar
1 tablespoon chopped parsley

Tahini Sauce

3 tablespoons tahini paste
1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon maple syrup
½ teaspoon crushed garlic
2 tablespoons cold water

Instructions

Chickpeas. If plan to cook the chickpeas from dried, do this first using one of these methods. When cooked, store them in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Note: If you cook them in advance, you can also roast the chickpeas with za'atar before putting them in the refrigerator.
Oven. Preheat the oven to 450˚F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Butternut squash. Slice the butternut squash in half to separate its neck from its bulbous bottom. A sharp chef's knife is best for this. If the skin is too tough to cut, place it in the microwave on high for 1 minute. This should soften the skin enough to slice through.
Store the neck portion in the refrigerator wrapped in pastic for another use, such butternut squash steaks. Use a vegetable peeler to remove the skin of the bulbous bottom.
Slice in half, remove the seeds and pulp using a spoon, and discard. Slice the butternut squash halves into thin wedges about 1" to 1 ½" thick at their thickest part. Place in a large mixing bowl, toss with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, and arrange on one side of the prepared baking sheet in a single layer. Lightly salt and pepper.
Note: Feel free to slice thicker wedges of butternut squash. But they will take longer to roast and the onions will need to be removed from the sheet pan before the squash is done.
Red onion. Slice the red onion from end to end and remove any wilted or damaged outter layers. Slice each half in half again around the middle. Slice the onion into 1 ½" wedges.
Transfer to the large mixing bowl and gentle toss one tablespoon of the olive oil. Try to keep them wedges together as much as you can. Arrange them on the other side of the prepared baking sheet from the butternut squash. Lightly salt and pepper.
Roast. Roast the veggies for 30 minutes or until the squash is tender and golden brown, and the onions are slightly caramelized on their tips.
Chickpeas. While the veggies roast, heat a medium skillet over medium heat. Place the chickpeas in the mixing bowl and toss with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil and 2 teaspoons of za'atar.
Transfer them to the warm skillet to toast for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. You may need to lower the heat to medium-low once the chickpeas heat up and begin to toast.
Set aside.
Tahini sauce. Whisk together all of the ingredients except the cold water until smooth. Whisk in the water, one tablespoon at a time until you have the consistency of honey.
Note: If the sauce separates, just drizzle water into the sauce and whisk. Keep doing this until the sauce comes back together.
Assemble. Combine the roasted vegetables with the pan-roasted chickpeas and the quartered dates and arrange on a serving platter. Sprinkle with the quartered dates and drizzle with the tahini sauce.
Top with the remaining za'atar (to your own personal preference) and chopped parsley.
Serve warm or at room temperature.

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