Chile Roasted Delicata

Preheat the oven to 425°F. Rinse and sort the French green lentils. Add lentils, 2 cups water, and a pinch of salt to a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer until lentils are tender, 18 to 20 minutes. Drain any remaining water. TIP: To “sort” means to look for and discard any naturally occurring debris or stones.

Trim the ends off the delicata squash, discard the seeds, and slice squash into ½ inch thick rounds. Halve the lemon, slice one half into thin rounds, and juice the other half. Roughly chop the parsley leaves and tender stems. Peel the garlic. Toast walnuts in a small nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes.

Add sliced squash, 1 tbsp olive oil, just half the Aleppo pepper, and a pinch of salt to one side of a baking sheet, and toss. Add sliced lemon, 2 tsp olive oil, and a pinch of salt to the other side of the baking sheet, and toss. Roast until squash is tender and golden brown and lemon starts to brown, 15 to 18 minutes. TIP: If the lemon wedges cook faster than the squash, remove them from the oven and let the squash continue cooking.

Add lemon juice, peeled garlic, toasted walnuts, remaining Aleppo pepper, roasted red peppers, tahini, just 1 tsp balsamic glaze, 1 tbsp olive oil, and a pinch of salt to a food processor. Purée the muhammara until smooth, 1 to 2 minutes.

Slice one charred lemon round in half and reserve for garnish. Roughly chop the remaining charred lemon rounds. Add chopped lemon rounds, chopped parsley, 1 tbsp olive oil, and a pinch of salt to a small bowl and stir to combine.

Divide the muhammara between plates and top with chile roasted delicata, lentils, and charred lemon. Garnish with halved lemon slice and drizzle with any remaining balsamic glaze. Enjoy!