Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
I can hear the mumbles about opening a bottle of wine to cook with it already, but trust me, once you start cooking with wine, you’ll never be the same. And this? This red wine reduction with toasted garlic and pine nuts and a smattering of oregano might be my best work. It’s just slightly bougie (for when we want our beans to be bougie) and makes the already flavorful brothy beans SING with new flavors, acids, crunch and texture. The red wine reduction and pine nuts could be served on the squash all on its own, but with the beans, it becomes one of my ideal cold-weather dinners.
Table of contents
- What is a red wine reduction?
- How to reheat the brothy beans if you’d like to serve them with this red wine honeynut squash
- What other squash can you use in place of honeynut squash?
What is a red wine reduction?
A red wine reduction is essentially where you take red wine, and simmer it until it thickens. I can be done in a variety of ways, but it’s most traditionally done with butter! Wine is essentially an acid, since it’s fermented juice that stops just short of becoming vinegar, so the acidic nature of the wine perfectly balances with the fat of the butter, creating a rich, deep sauce.
You typically see these sauces served alongside steaks or heavier proteins, but I love to make this particular red wine reduction to glaze sweet and soft honeynut squash. I’ve found the flavor to be pretty explosive, but in a bright, salty, acidic way.
How to reheat the brothy beans if you’d like to serve them with this red wine honeynut squash
This recipe is designed to pair with my brothy beans recipe, which I’ll link here:
Brothy Beans
Ah brothy beans, one of my easiest, most nutritious, and definitely most delicious and versatile recipes. I just love it so much. And if you aren't making your own dried beans yet, let me tell you, it is SO worth it. Bean broth is so flavorful and delicious (with the heaps of oregano I call this recipe "pizza beans"), and you can use these beans in many ways throughout the week. It makes a ton of food, but is so affordable, so you'll see me making a pot of brothy beans at least once every few weeks.
Check out this recipe
And that recipe makes a lot of beans, meaning they can get a bit dull over time! I like to make this squash dish and scoop it over the beans, letting the red wine reduction add some great flavor to a wholesome, filling meal.
The best way to reheat the brothy beans is simply put them on the stove over medium heat. Let them begin to steam, which means they’ll be just shy of a simmer. You can get them up to a simmer, but then they’ll be pretty hot! When in doubt, or when your stove is already preoccupied, microwaving on high heat for a few minutes also gets the job done.
What other squash can you use in place of honeynut squash?
I recommend smaller, sweeter squashes as substitutes since they can be tossed in the sauce the same way a honeynut can!
My favorite types of squash to use in place of honeynut are:
- Delicata Squash – cut into rings
- Acorn Squash – cut into small wedges
- Mini Butternut Squash – yes! They’re a thing! And yes, they are different than a honeynut, and sometimes easier to find
And that’s everything for these red wine honeynut squash on brothy beans!
If you make it, please tag me onPinterestorInstagramso I can see! It’s my favorite thing to scroll through stories and see what you all are making.
And of course feel free to leave any questions, comments or reviews! This is the best place to reach me, and I’d love to hear from you <3
Red Wine Honeynut Squash on Brothy Beans
Some of my best work and my favorite beans topper – these sweet honeynut are glazed in a red wine reduction (sounds fancy, but isn't), toasted with some pine nuts and garlic and topped with a smattering of oregano. You can eat the squash as-is, or serve them with a hearty helping of brothy beans. Either way, the flavors will have you falling in love.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time:10 minutes mins
Cook Time:25 minutes mins
Total Time:35 minutes mins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American, French, Fusion
Keyword: beans, brothy beans, Honeynut squash, red wine
Servings: 4 servings
Equipment
1 half sheet pan
1 large sauté pan
Ingredients
- 2 medium honeynut squash
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- 4 tablespoons salted butter
- 4-5 garlic cloves peeled and smashed
- 3 sprigs of rosemary
- 1/4 cup pine nuts
- 1 cup red cooking wine see notes
- 3-4 sprigs of fresh oregano stems removed
- 4 servings Brothy Beans
Instructions
Set a rack to the center of the oven and preheat to 425°F.
Core and deseed the squash, then quarter each squash lengthwise. Add these to an unlined baking sheet.
Drizzle the squash with olive oil and season with a few pinches of salt. Mix to coat.
Roast the squash in the oven until very tender, 20-25 minutes.
While the squash is roasting, prepare the reduction.
Set a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add in 3 tablespoons of butter and allow it to melt. Add the smashed garlic cloves, the rosemary and the pine nuts. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the pine nuts and garlic are golden and the whole mixture is smelling nutty and delicious, 4-5 minutes. Remove the rosemary sprigs, it's completely fine if the leaves have fallen off.
Pour in the cup of red wine. Stir to combine with the butter. Let this simmer until reduced by half, around 12-15 minutes.
When the mixture has thickened, add in the remaining tablespoon of butter. Stir to emulsify into a smooth sauce. Add half of the oregano leaves and stir. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed (I don't usually add any salt, but it's up to your personal taste).
Remove the squash from the oven.
Reduce the heat on the pan to low and add in the squash. Stir to coat the squash in the reduction, spooning over the pine nuts and herbs to cover each piece of squash.
To serve, add two pieces of squash to each bowl of brothy beans. Spoon any remaining pine nuts and red wine reduction over each bowl, garnish with the remaining oregano, and serve!
Notes
Note: a “cooking” wine is just a wine that you find suitably cheap enough to cook with. However, grocery stores also sell cooking wines in the vinegar section, which is a shelf-stable wine substitute that is great to keep in the pantry for recipes like these!
