Butternut Squash Fries

One of the coolest parts about living in an apartment is that I no longer have to walk down four flights of stairs to get to a kitchen.  Granted, I'm no Martha Stewart, but I have been having some fun cooking this year.  Exhibit one: Butternut Squash.  My parents sent me some back in October and I realized that while Butternut Squash soup sounded delicious, it also sounded time consuming and difficult.  Besides, I was much more intrigued at the idea of Butternut Squash Fries.  I mean, I've seen them done on Pinterest, but I felt challenged to discern if I too, could make a vegetable taste delectable and "fry-like"

The instructions I perused online suggested peeling the squash so the cutting would be easier, but I'm a college student and a vegetable peeler is not among my kitchen cutlery collection. Thus, I grabbed our sharpest knife and made sure the bandaids were in close proximity (I only nicked myself, by he way).

1. The first thing you need to do in the fry making process, is preheat your oven to 425 degrees.

2. While the oven is doing it's thing, you do yours: Grab the knife and carefully begin cutting the squash in half.  

3. From there, slice the pieces so they look like fries.  Make sure not to cut them too thin or they'll stick to the baking sheet...I found that out the hard way.  

4. Spray your baking sheet(s) and begin laying the fries down.  Place them close to each other, or else you'll never fit them all onto even two sheets.  After that, feel free to dust them with the flavorings of your choosing: salts, spices, you name it.  I went two routes.  My first batch was "sweet" and I coated them in cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice.  The second batch was "salty," coated with a pinch of salt, garlic salt and some parsley.

5. Put the fries in the oven for about 15-20 minutes.  Stay nearby though, as the cook time varies with your fries' thickness.

6. When they look like they've crisped, take them out and flip them over.  Once flipped, they won't take as much time on the other side, probably only 10 minutes.  And once they're done, just let them cool and enjoy.

Pretty easy, right?!  I thought it was fun to try and my roommates and I agreed that the salty fries went over much better than the sweet ones.  But play with the recipe yourself.  I'd love to see what you come up with!  In the end, I found the process to be quite fun, but a little time consuming.  Good thing the squash produced such a large batch of fries.  I stored them and was eating them for a good week!  I'd love to hear if you've tried making butternut squash fries or any other healthy treat!  I'm game for another food-experiment if you've got one that you want me to try!  Just comment below :)


See some of my other healthy food posts:
Frozen Yogurt Bar Face-off!
Make your own Sushi
Healthy Omelets 
Making Spaghetti Squash