The final installment of our time with Eric Tanaka. You can read our interview with him here and here. Back in October, I received an email from our soon-to-be dearly departed Kauffman, subject line: “I have a recipe for you to get.” The recipe he had in mind was from Serious Pie, specifically a roasted delicata squash appetizer. Here’s the description from his original review: “And the zucca al forno, slices of a sweet winter squash roasted in the oven until creamy, were napped with a bagna cauda dressing of garlic, anchovies, and capers, the perfect foil to their sugar.””It’s delicata squash season, I have some at home, and I’ve been thinking: how would I recreate that?,” wrote Kauffman. Well, JK, wonder no more. Courtesy of Eric Tanaka, here is the recipe from Serious Pie. Roasted Delicata Squash and Fennel with Bagna Cauda Saucemakes about four servings Note from Tanaka: At Serious Pie, the vegetables are roasted in our wood-burning oven. We use Murray River pink flake sea salt and Balinese long pepper for seasoning.1 medium delicata squash, halved lengthwise, seeded, and cut into quarter-inch half moons1 small fennel bulb, trimmed, cored, and sliced into quarter-inch thick piecesolive oil as needed salt and pepper Bagna Cauda Sauce:1/2 cup olive oil6 cloves of peeled garlic, sliced1 tablespoon capers, rinsed and chopped4 salt-packed anchovies, rinsed, squeezed of excess salt, and chopped2 tablespoons butter, room temperature a few teaspoons of chopped fresh herbs for garnish: a mixture of tarragon, parsley, and chives
Preheat the oven to 450°F. Spread the vegetables out on a well-oiled roasting pan or baking sheet and season them with salt and pepper. Roast in the oven until the vegetables are caramelized around the edges and cooked, but still a little al dente, about eight or nine minutes, turning them over with a spatula halfway through the cooking time. Remove the vegetables to a platter and allow to cool to room temperature.To make the sauce, heat the oil in a saute pan over low heat. Slowly cook the garlic, capers, and anchovies, stirring as needed, until just before the garlic starts to brown. Drop the butter in bit by bit and allow it to melt into the sauce, stirring to combine.In a bowl, toss the vegetables with enough sauce to coat them well. Transfer to plates, sprinkle chopped herbs over the top, and serve.