Roast crown prince squash with ricotta and caramelised chilli and sage butter

Serves 4 Starters and mains

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Method

Preheat the oven to 190C/ 210C F/Gas 8.

Cut the squash vertically into four. If you have one big squash, be very careful as the skin is super tough. Remove the seeds and skin and discard; a serrated knife works best. Cut each quarter lengthways into three or four big wedges.

Toss in the olive oil. Season and put on a large baking tray with the wedges standing up. Cook for 25-35 minutes until browned and fully cooked. You can do this in advance.

Keep the wedges in the fridge for 2–3 days and reheat. Plate up using a large platter or individual plates. Place a bit of ricotta on the bottom to secure the squash, then layer up a few of the wedges and scatter some blobs of ricotta around.

Layer up the rest of the squash and blob more ricotta over and around. To finish, generously drizzle over the caramelised sage and chilli butter. Season to taste and serve.

Cook’s note
You can use any type of robust pumpkin or squash, but not one with a high water content such as spaghetti squash.

To make the caramelised chilli and sage butter, put the butter and the picked sage leaves into a medium-sized frying pan and melt over a medium-low heat. Cook until the sage leaves start to crisp up. Turn the heat down to low from burning.

Once the leaves are crispy, turn off the heat. Add the lemon juice to prevent it from cooking further (it will sizzle loudly). Add the garlic and chilli flakes. Stir well and season to taste. Pour into a container and leave in a warm place until ready to use.