Butternut Squash with Crab and Feta

A few days ago, I got some bacon out of the freezer to defrost so I could make soup the next day, but when I went to put it in the refrigerator I discovered I'd taken a package of imitation crab out of the freezer the night before and never used it.

I had no earthly idea why I pulled the crab. None whatsoever. Couldn't even find any notes or a bookmark or anything that might offer up a clue as to what I was thinking.

I ran with it.

So, fake crab. Then I noticed a butternut squash of dubious quality, and an open container of feta cheese from another previous recipe. I also had some fresh basil that needed to be used (although upon closer inspection that ship had sailed, so I had to use some crumbled dried basil from my garden). And garlic, because garlic. Extra-virgin olive oil and some Olde Thompson's no salt seasoning blend, and I was off!

Then I remembered I bought that really cool spiralizer last summer, and I thought butternut squash would make excellent "spaghetti"! So I got it out, set it up... and then realized I hadn't cut the bottom evenly so the wheel wouldn't really stay. And because of the seeds, it ended up slipping inside and wouldn't turn after a bit.

Wasn't until just now I realized I should have put it on the spiralizer the other way around. Note to self for later!

At any rate, it did sort-of work. I had to separate the spirals, and of course they were much too long so I broke most of them into manageable pieces. You'll notice in the picture above there's a frying pan next to the spiralizer, while here the squash spirals are on a shallow edged baking sheet. I didn't plan ahead, is how that went.

I caught the spirals in a large skillet and then tossed them with some olive oil and no salt seasoning, then spread them in this pan to roast for a while.

While the squash was in the oven, I added more oil to the pan and sauteed the garlic for a couple of minutes. The idea was more to infuse the oil with garlic flavour than to cook the garlic, but of course it got slightly browned as well.

Then I added the imitation crab, chopped up, to the pan and cooked it for a couple more minutes to heat through. It doesn't require cooking at all, but I wanted it to get coated with the garlic olive oil and be warm.

It's a different picture, I swear! This is after the squash came out of the oven, having roasted about 20 minutes and been stirred a couple of times. It was cooked but still firm, and roasting it gave it that subtly sweet, earthy flavour I love about butternut squash.

I dumped the squash into the skillet with the basil and some more seasoning and continued cooking it over medium-low heat for a few minutes while I finished off my side dishes. Probably not more than 5 minutes, since everything was already cooked and just needed to be combined.

Just before serving, I sprinkled on some feta cheese. The amount in the recipe below is a guess since I know about how much I started with and how much I had left, but it's really to taste. Make sure you don't cook it much longer after adding the feta. Not only will the feta start to melt, but your crab will get chewy.

Scoop it out onto a plate, and you're done! We got two very generous servings out of this, so adjust according to your needs. If you don't have a spiralizer (although I highly recommend one... I picked mine up for about $30 and it's paid for itself already), you can julienne the squash however works for you. The idea is to have it in small, thin, pieces so it blends well and cooks thoroughly.

Butternut Squash with Crab and Feta

Serves 2

1 medium butternut squash

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 teaspoon salt-free seasoning (I used Olde Thompson's No Salt grinder)

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 large clove garlic

8 ounces imitation crab, thawed if frozen and excess water squeezed out and chopped

1 teaspoon salt-free seasoning

1 teaspoon dried basil (or 1 tablespoon fresh, minced)

2 ounces feta cheese, crumbled

Preheat oven to 400F; coat a baking sheet with shallow edges with nonstick cooking spray.

Cut the ends off the squash and peel it (a very sharp vegetable peeler works well for this). If you have a vegetable spiralizer, use it with the spaghetti-sized blade to create spirals out of the squash. Separate or cut spirals as necessary, then toss with 1 tablespoon oil and 1/2 teaspoon seasoning.

Spread squash spirals on prepared baking sheet and roast at 400F for 20 minutes, stirring a couple of times while cooking.

Meanwhile, heat 1/4 cup oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic and cook, stirring constantly, 1-2 minutes, just until starting to brown. Add chopped crab and cook for a couple of minutes to heat, stirring frequently.

When squash is done, add it to the skillet along with 1 teaspoon seasoning and basil and cook, stirring frequently, 3-5 minutes more. Just before serving, sprinkle with feta cheese.

Serving Size: 635g

Calories: 651

Calories from Fat: 348

Total Fat: 38.7g

Saturated Fat: 8.9g

Trans Fat: 0.0g

Cholesterol: 39mg

Sodium: 908mg

Total Carbohydrates: 69.4g

Dietary Fiber: 9.1g

Sugars: 12.5g

Protein: 16.7g