HOTDISH

ingredients:

1 pound thick cut bacon

2 large purple onions, thinly sliced

Kosher salt

Serves 8

2 pounds squash, seeded, peeled, and chopped into ½ inch cubes

Leaves from 6 sprigs fresh thyme

Black pepper

Crushed red pepper

2 large apples, chopped into ½ inch cubes

¼ cup white wine

1 cup vegetable broth biscuits:

2 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

¾ teaspoon kosher salt

14 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and cubed

¼ cup heavy cream

1 large egg

Cheese, optional

Preheat oven to 425° F.

In a large skillet or pot, crisp the bacon. Transfer it to a paper towel. Drain off most of the fat from the pan, you’ll want a thin coating to remain, add the onions and cook over medium high for 10 minutes, until soft.

Add the squash, thyme, a few turns of pepper and a few pinches of crushed red pepper and cook for 10 more minutes, stirring occasionally, and then add the wine and broth. Give the bacon a rough chop and add it to the pan along with the apples. Bring the mixture to a simmer and then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 15-20 minutes, while you make the biscuits.

To make the biscuits, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add the butter and, using a food processor or pastry cutter or your hands, incorporate the butter until the mixture is the consistency of oatmeal. Mix in the cream until the mixture comes together to form a dough. Turn it out onto a floured work surface, pat it out to ¾ inch thick and then cut out round biscuits, re-rolling scraps as needed. (You can also use torn crusty bread as the topping for your hotdish. I like this as a lower maintenance weekday option.)

Pour the squash mixture into an oven-safe vessel such as a casserole dish or cast iron pan or Dutch oven and then top it with the biscuits. Brush the biscuits with the beaten egg and top with black pepper and grated cheese, if desired. Bake until the biscuits are golden brown. Begin checking for doneness at 25 minutes.