This one’s TASTY.
I made a few modifications to the basic Mark Bittman’s Autumn Millet Bake recipe that I found here.
Modification #1: I used a mixture of quinoa and millet, mostly because I a) had never really had millet before and b) I was going to have this as a main course, and didn’t feel that the millet would have as much protein as the quinoa.
Modification #2: I doubled the amount of grain, using 1 cup quinoa and 1/2 cup millet, and increased the amount of water accordingly; I also added a little more sage. This probably accounts for the fact that the squash stayed on top rather than sinking into the bake.
Modification #3: I felt that the recipe as is would have been kind of too sweet, so I chopped up some onion and garlic and added it to the oil in the skillet before I added the grains to toast (be sure to rinse off the quinoa first). I really liked the contrast between (among?) the savory onion/garlic and the sweet squash and the tart cranberries.
Modification #4: I probably cut my butternut squash in 1/2-inch chunks rather than 1-inch.
The easy answer to too sweet, which works like potatoes with too much salt, is a few shots of bitters or a half-teaspoon of decaffeinated espresso powder.
This is my nonna’s trick. You can trust it.
Does look mighty tasty.
Looks like a bitter or semi-bitter herb, not necessarily cilantro but something like it maybe, might flow nicely with it, or maybe that would be too much.