Instructions

1. Pre-heat oven to 220°C/200°C fan assisted/gas 7.
2. Cut the butternut squashes lengthways to halve them. Scoop out the seeds and discard. Sprinkle with a little bit of salt then loosely wrap the butternut halves in tinfoil. Place on a large baking tray then roast for 1 hour. Tip: We prefer roasting butternut to boiling. Roasted butternut is sweeter and the natural flavours are brought out with roasting, also, you don’t end up with watery, bland squash!
3. Leave to cool on a wire rack for about 10 minutes, then open the tinfoil and leave too cool just until cold enough to easily handle.
4. Use a spoon to scoop the flesh out of the skin and place in a large bowl. Add the butter then roughly mash together with a fork. Taste for seasoning and add salt if needed. You could also add a bit more butter if you like!
5. To serve, spoon a thick layer of mashed butternut into a warmed serving dish, then lightly sprinkle with a bit of cinnamon and nutmeg (about ¼ tsp cinnamon & 1/8 tsp nutmeg). Spoon another thick layer of butternut on top, then sprinkle again with a bit of the spices, do this until all the butternut has been spooned into the serving dish. Finally, top with a knob of butter and a last sprinkling of spices. Serve hot. Tip: The reason we layer the butternut with the spices is to keep the orange colour of the squash. Mixing the spices into the butternut turns it a brown shade, not as appealing as the lovely bright orange!
6. If making ahead: Roast the butternut and roughly mash with butter as described above. Leave to cool for about 30 minutes, then cover the bowl with clingfilm or transfer to a lidded plastic container, then keep in the fridge for up to 2 days. When ready to serve, either heat in the microwave, stirring at intervals so that it heats evenly, or heat in a pot on the stove, also stirring occasionally. Transfer to a serving dish as described above.