So, your golem backed up the toilet again, your owl wants to be let out, and you still have paperwork to incinerate today. That there’s food on the table at all is a minor miracle, but you have a tiny doubt- will I have enough food to fill the growling stomachs of all my imps? Were you planning on taking a brown bag lunch to the Arcane University tomorrow and you need leftovers? The best laid plans and whatnot…

The ability to throw a side dish or two together without much thought or energy can turn a quick dinner into something impressive, or a light dinner into a filling comfort meal! Yet, every spellbook I’ve read made them into big productions that need strange ingredients that you don’t keep on hand and take an hour to put together, even though you only realize you need them after you’ve already started cooking.

With the same amount of hassle as a side salad, you can put together any number of quick side dishes! So to continue the series of Quick Conjurations, I’d like to introduce you to this delicata squash spell. It’s very simple, and delicata squash are cheap and durable- you can easily keep one around for a few weeks until the opportunity arises!

This recipe doesn’t require peeling, and while the cutting of the squash is a little involved the first time, they’re small and manageable. You will quickly do it on auto-pilot! The seasonings and oils can be changed in many ways to make different flavors!

Sweet and Spicy Delicata Squash (+3 mana, +3 health, +2 stamina)

Ingredients

• 1 Delicata squash (washed & dried- the skin is edible and not worth removing, so just clean it off!)
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon maple syrup or agave
• 2 teaspoons blended chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (put the entire can in the blender, blend completely, then freeze into small portions to spice up side dishes!)
• pinch salt

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Grease a baking sheet, or use a silicone baking sheet cover/parchment paper- maple is sticky and hard to clean!
2. To prepare the squash, start by cutting the very top with the stem off, then cut lengthwise in half. Scoop out the seeds and set them aside for another recipe (coming soon, I promise!) and place the squash cut-side down on the cutting board. Cut the squash into ½ inch slices, like half-rings, and discard the very end when you get to it.
3. In a good-sized mixing bowl, combine oil, maple/agave, and blended chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, then add squash. It probably won’t look like there’s enough sauce, but you want everything just coated, so keep stirring and tossing until all surfaces are covered.
4. Place the squash on a single layer on the baking sheet, dust with salt and spoon any extra oil/sauce over top of the squash rings. Bake for 15-17 minutes or until edges are browned.