The best vegan side dish
This roasted delicata with maple tahini is a creative vegan side dish for Holiday dinners. Delicata squash is layered with crispy kale, crunchy chickpeas, and pumpkin seeds. Then it's drizzled with a delicious maple tahini sauce that is laced with fresh thyme. This dish is served like a warm salad. I created this recipe in partnership with Mighty Sesame Co Tahini. They have compensated me for the recommendation. However, the opinions are all my own. The uber creamy tahini maple sauce really makes this dish special.
What is Tahini?
Tahini is a ground paste of sesame seeds. It's used in Middle Eastern and Mediterranean foods. Tahini adds a nutty flavor to any dish and has a decadent creaminess. I use tahini in my plant-based recipes because it makes foods creamy without dairy. Tahini is very healthy and has about the same nutritional stats as peanut butter. It really makes the flavors in this roasted delicata with maple tahini dish pop. You can read more about my favorite sesame tahini from Mighty Sesame Co. here.
What is delicata squash?
Delicata squash is a seasonal Fall/Winter squash. It is yellow to orange in color and has green stripes. It is a very pretty squash. You have probably just walked right past this gem because it is nestled in with all of the melee of squashes in the Fall. It is hard to tell which of them are decorations and which are for eating. This stunner of a squash is definitely edible. In fact the entire squash is edible including the skin! This squash is similar to a butternut in taste but is starchier and more hardy. Butternut breaks down and gets mushy whereas delicata keeps its integrity and even gets a little crispy on the outside.
Ingredients:
This dish has a handful of simple seasonal ingredients.
- delicata squash
- olive oil
- salt
- garlic powder
- smoked paprika
- chickpeas
- Dino Kale
- pumpkin seeds
- tahini
- mandarin oranges
- lemon
- water
- maple syrup
- fresh thyme leaves
How to make Roasted Delicata with Maple Tahini
This dish is really easy to make. Just pop the ingredients on sheet pans and roast them up. The dressing is as simple as throwing the ingredients in a blender!
- Preheat oven to 400
- On a large sheet pan lay out delicata squash in a single layer. Drizzle or spray with olive oil and season with ¼ tsp salt and ½ tsp garlic powder. Bake for 30 minutes turning once halfway.
- On another sheet pan add chickpeas, 1 tsp olive oil, 1 tbsp maple syrup, ¼ tsp salt and ½ tsp smoked paprika. Toss until well mixed then bake for 20 minutes turning once halfway.
- While they are baking make the Orange, maple tahini sauce by adding tahini, lemon, orange, water , fresh thyme, ½ tsp garlic powder, maple syrup and ¼ tsp salt and blending until smooth and creamy.
- Spread kale on another sheet pan and spray with remaining oil and season with a pinch of salt. Bake for 5-7 minutes until crisp.
- Layer the crispy kale, delicata and chickpeas in a bowl. Drizzle with half the sauce and put out the other half in a small bowl for drizzling. You will want more! Garnish with fresh thyme. Serve this warm or room temp.
Other delicious Tahini Recipes
Roasted Delicata with Maple Tahini
Ingredients
- 4 delicata squash seeded and cut in half moons
- 3 tsp olive oil divided
- 1 tsp salt divided
- 1 tsp garlic powder divided
- 1 tsp smoked paprika divided
- 1 can chickpeas drained
- 1 Bunch Dino Kale chopped bite sized pieces
- 3 tbsp pumpkin seeds
- ½ cup tahini
- 3 mandarin oranges juiced
- 1 lemon juiced
- ¾ cup water
- 1 tbsp plus 1 tsp maple syrup divided
- 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400
- On a large sheet pan lay out delicata squash in a single layer. Drizzle or spray with olive oil and season with ¼ tsp salt and ½ tsp garlic powder. Bake for 30 minutes turning once halfway.
- On another sheet pan add chickpeas, 1 tsp olive oil, 1 tbsp maple syrup, ¼ tsp salt and ½ tsp smoked paprika. Toss until well mixed then bake for 20 minutes turning once halfway.
- While they are baking make the Orange, maple tahini sauce by adding tahini, lemon, orange, water , fresh thyme, ½ tsp garlic powder, maple syrup and ¼ tsp salt and blending until smooth and creamy.
- Spread kale on another sheet pan and spray with remaining oil and season with a pinch of salt. Bake for 5-7 minutes until crisp.
- Layer the crispy kale, delicata and chickpeas in a bowl. Drizzle with half the sauce and put out the other half in a small bowl for drizzling. You will want more! Garnish with fresh thyme. Serve this warm or room temp.
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