Who knew butternut squash could be so versatile? As a kid, I remember only having it around Thanksgiving and the holidays. It turns out butternut squash is great on both pizza and tacos. The squash is rubbed with ground annatto/achiote seeds, cumin, oregano, and smoked paprika. Then it’s roasted in the oven until soft. For the toppings, I caramelized an onion with brown sugar and smoked paprika. The tacos were sweet and spicy and so good! I added a tablespoon of the black bean salsa along with some queso fresco for garnish.
Achiote Roasted Butternut Squash Tacos
(Makes 6 tacos)
Printable Version
Ingredients:
- 3 1/2 cups butternut squash, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
- 1 tbsp ground annatto/achiote seed
- corn oil
- 2 tsp cumin, ground
- 3 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tbsp oregano
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1 red onion, halved and thinly sliced
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 batch Black Bean and Sweet Corn Salsa
- queso fresco, crumbled
- 6 corn tacos, warmed
Directions:
- On a flat pan, spread out the squash evenly and toss with the corn oil.
- In a bowl, mix the cumin, ground achiote, oregano, and 1 tsp of the smoked paprika. Rub the spice mixture evenly over the squash. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of the brown sugar, salt and pepper to taste.
- Bake in a 375F oven for 30 minutes until soft and browned.
- Meanwhile, heat a little corn oil in a saute pan and add the onions. Add 2 tsp of the smoked paprika and the rest of the brown sugar and stir. Cook on medium high heat until soft and caramelized, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Dress the tacos with a few tablespoons each of squash, onions, black bean salsa and queso fresco.
Those are some tasty looking tacos!