Still Thanksgiving in my heart

I just love Thanksgiving food. I might just have to buy a turkey breast for dinner this week. We sent some leftovers home with our parents, and we have guests here for the weekend, so our leftovers didn't stretch as far as they usually do. We had turkey dinner for lunch today, and I made turkey noodle soup for supper with the carcass, but that's pretty much it for the turkey.

If I do get a turkey or turkey breast, I might have to make this dish to go with it. My friend Annette brought this to our first Thanksgiving dinner, in 2002. It is absolutely delicious. I could eat this for dessert, or breakfast. If you typically make a sweet potato casserole with marshmallows, etc., this dish would be a nice substitute.

I am guessing the butter could halved or so...and it's definitely NOT diabetic friendly (which is why I haven't made it for quite some time; my father-in-law and my mom are both diabetic). Seriously yummy.

Baked Spiced Butternut Squash with Apples and Maple Syrup

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
3/4 cup pure maple syrup
1/4 cup apple juice or cider
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 small butternut squashes, peeled, halved lengthwise, seeded, cut crosswise into 1/3-inch-thick slices
4 6-ounce Granny Smith apples, peeled, halved, cored, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices

Preheat oven to 400°F. Butter 13 x 9 x 2-inch glass baking dish. Stir butter, maple syrup and apple juice in small saucepan over medium-low heat until butter melts. Increase heat and boil until mixture is slightly reduced, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat; whisk in cinnamon, allspice and salt.

Arrange 1/3 of squash slices in prepared dish. Top with half of apple slices, then 1/3 of squash slices. Arrange remaining slices of squash and apple atop, alternating squash and apple slices and overlapping slightly. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Pour maple syrup mixture over. Cover baking dish tightly with foil.

Bake casserole until squash is almost tender, about 50 minutes. Uncover and bake until squash is tender, basting occasionally with syrup, about 20 minutes longer.

This dish can be made 1 day ahead. After baking, cover with foil and refrigerate. Rewarm, covered, in 350°F oven about 25 minutes, or microwave on high about 8 minutes.

Spoon syrup from dish over apples and squash and serve.Serves 8 to 10.