Baked Sriracha Butternut Squash Fries

We all need some easy, low calorie side dish recipes to have on hand, right? This recipe for vegan Baked Sriracha Butternut Squash Fries fits the bill!

Food Blogs and Calories

I am perpetually counting calories. Which is a whole lot of fun! Perhaps this is just my perception, but it sure seems like the food blogging world is full of the “Oh gosh—I just eat whatever I want, and I never workout!” types who weigh 110 pounds and post six dessert recipes a week, usually involving Rolos and/or several heaping cups full of Nutella and I resent them and their amazing metabolism.

I am not one of those bloggers. Nope. I have to watch every single thing I eat. So butternut squash fries make a frequent appearance on our dinner table. If I’m making veggie burgers or grilled cheese or something else that’s a little bit high in calories, butternut squash fries are a good low calorie counterbalance to that. And they’re filling! And delicious! And healthy! Butternut squash is high in fiber, beta carotene, potassium, and Vitamins C & B6. So in addition to having fewer calories than potato fries, they’re more nutritious too.

Lower calories! More nutrition! Really, you can’t go wrong with butternut squash fries.

Disclaimer

Okay, there’s one slight downside. Butternut squash fries are not as crispy as regular fries. They’re just as versatile, though. I used to alternate between sprinkling them with chipotle powder and sprinkling them with cinnamon, but my new thing is sriracha. Baked Sriracha Butternut Squash Fries are now my favorite butternut squash fries! To me, they’re just spicy enough, but you can always drizzle some extra sriracha onto the fries after they’re done baking.

Baked Sriracha Butternut Squash Fries

Sweet-and-spicy oven fries made with butternut squash and sriracha.

• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 40 minutes
• Total Time: 55 minutes
• Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp peanut, vegetable, canola or any other neutral-flavored oil
• 1 tsp sriracha
• 1 large butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into evenly-sized steak fries
• salt to taste

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 425°F.
2. Whisk together oil and sriracha in a large bowl. Transfer butternut squash fries to bowl and toss to coat. (It’s messy, but use your hands—it works best!) Pour fries onto a rimmed baking sheet and arrange in a single layer. Sprinkle with salt.
3. Bake for 20 minutes, then carefully flip fries over using tongs or a spatula. Sprinkle with additional salt and bake for 20 minutes more or until tender and browned on edges.

Notes

If you’re not a fan of sriracha, you can use this same method with cinnamon, chipotle chili powder, Chinese 5 spice powder, smoked paprika, curry powder, or pumpkin pie spice. So many possibilities!