Roasted Butternut Squash and Chickpea Salad with Lemon Tahini Dressing

When the weather starts getting cold, I find myself wanting to eat winter squashes all the time.  It just seems like the right thing to do.  I like spaghetti squash with herbs and butter, acorn squash with butter and a bit of maple syrup (and a splash of pumpkin seed oil if I have it), and butternut squash, roasted in the oven with olive oil, salt, and a bit of spice.

This recipe takes spiced, roasted butternut squash (I used cinnamon and cumin) and combines it with chickpeas, onions, garlic, cilantro, and a lemony, nutty dressing.  I thought it was an interesting, new preparation for my beloved winter squash.

The salad is delicious warm, and though I ate it for lunch yesterday by itself, I could imagine it being very good and very beautiful on a bed of arugula.  I loved the dressing--the tart lemon and rich tahini are perfect for each other.  The raw garlic and onion in the dressing was a bit intense.  If I did it again, I'd roast the onions and garlic along with the squash to mellow them out a bit.

This preparation of butternut squash has traveled quite extensively throughout the food blogosphere; you can find the recipe here and here.