Tarentaise Eggs in Buttternut Squash

Baked butternut squash halves form a nest for gooey Vermont cheese and soft-centered eggs. Dip garlic toast into the yolks and you’ll have a poached-egg-squash dish that’s sunny to look at and delicious enough to devour for breakfast.

Servings: 2

• 1 small butternut squash
• 2-4 Tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, unpealed
• 2 fresh thyme sprigs
• 1/2 cup Tarentaise, finely cubed or grated or Gruyère 
• ground pepper
• ground nutmeg
• sea salt
• baguette rounds or toast

1. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Leave the butternut squash whole, but pierce it a few times with a paring knife so it doesn’t split in the heat. Bake it on a cookie tray or Pyrex dish for about 30 minutes, or until the squash is soft enough to halve with a knife.
2. Use a spoon to scoop out the hot seeds, then brush the cut halves with olive oil, drizzling a little extra in each seedless cavity. Drop in a clove of unpealed garlic and a sprig of fresh thyme.
3. Return the squash halves to the oven, face up on a tray. Bake another 30 minutes, or until a fork pierces the inner flesh cleanly and easily. Remove the squash from the oven.
4. Turn the oven down to 375 degrees. Remove the garlic cloves with tongs and set aside.
5. Crack an egg into each squash cavity and top with Tarentaise, sprinkling a little extra across the length of the squash. Return the halves to the oven for 15 minutes, or until the eggs are set but still custardy.
6. While the eggs bake, prepare the toast. Slather each slice with roasted garlic and any leftover cheese. Serve alongside baked squash for dipping. Top each squash half with ground pepper, a sprinkle of nutmeg, and sea salt before serving.