Curried Butternut Squash Fries with Chutney Ketchup

If you're anything like me, you watch the Super Bowl for the commercials and the occasional end zone dance. But, end zone dances are now apparently outlawed. So, with little risk of missing any out-of-bounds ballet between commercials, why not make a few trays of these?

If you are watching the game with others who are more interested in the commercials they will probably like these slightly off-beat, quirkier (not to mention ridiculously healthier ) fries too. Still, these have a definite pub fry, Super Bowl Party snack feel, so they should be loved even by those who root for a uniform on Super Bowl Sunday.

These were inspired by the Elana's Pantry version of Butternut Squash Fries.

CURRIED BUTTERNUT SQUASH FRIES

1 medium butternut squash
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. curry powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 Tbs. grapeseed oil

1. Peel skin off butternut squash with vegetable peeler.
2. Chop squash into large matchsticks (scooping out seeds), they will shrink significantly.
3. Combine all ingredients in large bowl and toss until squash is well coated in oil and spices.
4. Lay out fries equally spaced on 1-3 cookie sheets, will depend upon size of the squash.
5. Broil until fries are just starting to turn crispy on edges (watch them, it's different in every oven).

Serve with . . .

CHUTNEY KETCHUP

Half or Full Recipe Apple Chutney

1. Put Apple Chutney in blender.
2. Blend until smooth.

Caramelized Banana Frosting (Sugar-Free)

"Good Artists Copy, Great Artists Steal"

~Pablo Picasso

I recently re-watched Pirates of Silicon Valley in ten parts on youtube, of course. This is one of my favorite movies—for the story, not for any cinematic value. I love when Noah Wyle, playing Steve Jobs re-quotes Picasso, stating "good artists copy, great artists steal" and promptly utilizes everything that Xerox has inadvertently gifted to Apple Computers.

Similarly in cooking, I can almost never make a recipe exactly as printed but I definitely "steal" techniques and parts of the process from cookbooks and my favorite food bloggers. While watching Pirates of Silicone Valley and after months of attempts to concoct a frosting recipe that doesn't depend on large amounts of oil, is sweetened naturally but is worthy of the title "frosting," I thought about the first step in my favorite ice cream recipe, Roasted Banana Coconut Ice Cream over at Elana's Pantry. The caramelized bananas and dates had a waxy texture that I realized would be the perfect base for a frosting recipe. Who doesn't want to be a Pirate once in a while?

After adapting and "sampling" Elana's tecnique, I came up with a frosting recipe that was amazing in it's own right (not just for the gluten-free, sugar free, healthier category). Next time, I plan on doubling it so that I can pile it even higher on top of Banana Cupcakes or Coconut Flour Vanilla Cupcakes. All months ahead of Talk Like a Pirate Day— Arghhh!

Caramelized Banana Frosting

Pre-Heat Oven to 375º

2 medium bananas

3 medjool dates

1 Tbs. coconut oil, melted

1 Tbs. vanilla extract (make sure gluten-free)

1/2 C. coconut milk (light, okay)

2 Tbs. coconut oil, melted

2 Tbs. arrowroot powder (Cornstarch will work to if you're not trying to make it grain-free)

1. In a glass pyrex dish, slice the bananas and dates into 1 inch slices, toss in 1 Tbs. Melted Coconut Oil and 1 Tbs. Vanilla Extract.

2. Bake for approximately 25 minutes.

3. Puree the caramelized banana mixture with the coconut milk until smooth in blender, vita-mix or magic bullet and pour into a medium sized bowl.

4. Stir in melted coconut oil and arrowroot powder until combined well.

5. Let sit for 10 minutes.

Frosts 12 cupcakes lightly, double if you would like to pile on the frosting.