Late Nights with Kabocha Squash

I at dinner last night at 10:30 PM – yikes! I would complain, but how can you grumble when you get to enjoy a delicious home-cooked meal with very little effort? Did I mention that I actually went for a run while it cooked?

Why did I eat so late at night? Let’s walk through my crazy evening. I left work just after 5PM and it immediately started raining on my drive home. By the time I got home and changed, the sky opens up and it started pouring. Maybe I’ll run after church…

Tonight was the the kickoff for DNow weekend, which stands for Disciple Now. DNow is a huge discipleship weekend for the middle schoolers & high schoolers at our church, where they spend the weekend at host homes (like mine!) with leaders (typically one adult and one college student) to learn and grow as Christians. This is our second year participating, so I know to expect a fun crazy weekend with9 or 10 6th-grade boys filling the house!

After the kickoff, I rushed home to make myself dinner and squeeze in that postponed run. It was after 9PM, so I know it would be a late night. Thank goodness the Thrive Foods recipe I have chosen for tonight is easy AND delicious! Who would have thought a meal named Wild Rice with Kabocha Squash and Sage Butter would be easy?!

To start, I sliced open a Kabocha Squash, cut that in half and brushed with Coconut Oil. This baked during the rest of the preparation (and during my run). I’ve been reading about this squash on several blogs over the past month, I can’t believe I’ve been missing out on this sweet, almost pumpkiny squash. Yum!

After throwing the squash in the oven, I started the rice and got changed for my run. After starting the rice to simmer, I rushed out the door for the first half of my run. Halfway through, I ran by the house to turn off the ride and then finish the run. I walked through the door with 3 minutes to spare before checking the squash. Now THAT’S multi-tasking!

The squash needed a few more minutes, so I made up the Sage Butter while it continued baking. The sage butter was just a few ingredients in the food process to combine – easy, peasy! While it was blending, I pulled the squash out of the oven to cool.

After gently warming the newly created sauce in a pan, I stirred in the rice and added chopped squash to the mix. The cookbook mentioned you could eat the skin, which is actually very good. I decided to eat it on the side…kind of like chips (but chewier). These pictures really don’t do this dinner justice, I don’t take my best photos after 10PM. 🙂