Roasted Butternut

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Slice a 2-2.5 pound butternut squash in half and scrape out any seeds. Lightly coat the cut side of the squash with olive oil and place cut-side down on a sheet tray. You can line the sheet tray with foil or parchment, if you like.

Roast the butternut on the center rack for 35-40 minutes, until the flesh is soft and tender. You can push on the skin with your finger to test for doneness. The squash should give easily and feel soft to the touch. Pull the butternut from the oven but leave the oven on. Let the butternut cool until it's easy to handle.

Lamb Meatballs

In a medium bowl, place 1 pound of ground lamb. You can use beef if you prefer. Season the ground meat with 2 teaspoons of Diamond Crystal kosher salt (3/4 tsp. if using table salt) and 1 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper. Lightly mix the seasoning into the ground lamb with your hands. Try not to over mix the meat into a paste. Form the seasoned ground lamb into 16 meatballs - about 2 tablespoons of meat per meatball.

Lamb Chickpea Stew

In a Dutch oven, heat about 1.5 tablespoons of grapeseed oil over medium heat. Add the 16 meatballs to the pot and brown them on all sides. Don't worry about cooking them through at this point. They will finish cooking in the stew. When browned on all sides, transfer the meatballs to a plate and set aside.

Add the za'atar and red pepper flakes to the fat in the pot over medium heat. Stir to bloom the spices for about 30 seconds, until fragrant. Then add the sliced onion to the pot with a generous pinch of kosher salt and sauté the onions just until they're soft, but not totally translucent.

When the onions are soft, add the minced garlic to the pot. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Stir to combine and cook the garlic for about 30 seconds. Now add the full can of stewed tomatoes and their juices. Then add the drained and rinsed chickpeas. Add the meatballs back to the pot.

Cover the pot and place it in the oven for 20 minutes. While the stew is in the oven, mash the butternut.

Scoop the flesh out of the butternut skin into a medium bowl. Add the 1/4 cup of salted butter and use a spoon to mash the butternut and melt the butter. Taste for seasoning and add kosher salt to taste.

After 20 minutes in the oven pull out the stew. The lamb meatballs are cooked through when the internal temperature is 165 degrees F.

Scoop a serving of the butternut mash into a wide shallow bowl. Then ladle on a serving of the Lamb Chickpea Stew.

Garnish the dish with fresh cilantro leaves.