I scored a bunch of adorably mini honeynut squashes at one of my favourite local shops recently. We love this variety of squash so much and the size is just right for us. I started thinking about a spicy-smoky black bean dip with the slightly sweet and creamy roasted squash in the mix. All with a pile of tortilla chips, naturally!
This dip turned out so good. I majorly toast some pumpkin seeds and grind them into the base of the dip. This step, along with the coconut aminos (or tamari), adds so much depth. Then we simply add the cooked squash, black beans, roasted garlic, spices, olive oil etc to a food processor. Super easy and the resulting dip is so unique. Perfect for a little Fall harvest get together.
The honeynut squash that I used was adorably small, so I wound up with precisely the one cup of cooked squash needed. If yours is a bit larger and you have leftover squash, I definitely recommend making my Creamy Butternut Orzo with Crispy Miso Mustard Brussels Sprouts!
You could also use this dip in sandwiches or as a base layer in roasted veggie tacos. Once you seal the dip up in a container, it will keep in the fridge for up to 5-6 days. The roasted garlic flavour will definitely intensify over that time! Just preparing you ;)
You already know that I truly love a dip. I like to have a good one on hand for snacking (if I’m organized enough haha). If you’re looking for more vegan dip inspiration, check out this roundup of my best Vegan Appetizer Recipes that I posted somewhat recently! This collection features my all time fave Vegan Caramelized Onion Dip too.
Black Bean Dip with Roasted Squash, Garlic, Pumpkin Seeds & Chipotles
Ingredients
- ½ cup raw pumpkin seeds
- 1 small head of garlic
- 1 small honeynut or butternut squash, halved lengthwise (see notes)
- ½ cup olive oil, divided
- sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 cup cooked black beans (drained and rinsed if using canned)
- 2 chipotles in adobo + 1 tablespoon adobo sauce (or more/less to taste)
- 2 teaspoons coconut aminos (or 1 teaspoon tamari)
- 1 ½ teaspoons sweet paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
Garnishes
- olive oil
- finely diced red onion
- pumpkin seeds
- chopped cilantro
Equipment
Notes
- Any type of cooked squash purée is great as long as you get about 1 cup of purée total. I used a very small honeynut squash that gave me exactly that amount. The only squash that I would not recommend for this are delicata or spaghetti squash.
- If the squash that you roasted yields more than the one cup of purée that you need, I recommend making my creamy butternut orzo with the leftovers.
- Use as much or as little chipotles as you like! I started with one and wound up using four.
- I think tortilla chips are ideal with this, but cut vegetables, crackers or crostini are also wonderful.
- My head of garlic yielded six garlic cloves total. This is the appropriate amount! If your head of garlic is huge, roast the whole head and use only six cloves in this dip. Reserve the remaining garlic for salad dressing, pasta sauces, smearing on bread etc!
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F and grab two small-medium baking sheets. You can line both with parchment paper if you like, but it's not 100% necessary.
- Spread the pumpkin seeds out on one of the baking sheets and pop it in the oven. Roast the pumpkin seeds until golden brown and toasty-smelling, about 5-6 minutes. Remove from the oven and let them cool.
- Cut the top ¼ inch off of the head of garlic, exposing the cloves inside.
- Set the halved squash, cut sides facing up, on the other baking sheet. Grab a piece of aluminum foil big enough to wrap the bulb of garlic. Set that down on the baking sheet too and place the garlic bulb on top.
- Drizzle the cut squash and the exposed top of the garlic bulb with 1-2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Season both with salt and pepper. Wrap the garlic bulb up tight with the foil and turn the squash over so that the cut side is facing down. Transfer this baking sheet to the oven and roast until squash is tender, about 40 minutes. Let the squash and garlic cool a bit.
- Once it's cool enough to handle, scoop out the seeds of the squash and discard. Then, scoop out and measure roughly 1 cup of the cooked squash. Remove the bulb of garlic from its foil wrapping.
- Set up your food processor with the "S" blade. Place the pumpkin seeds in the food processor and pulse until they are coarsely ground. Then, add the 1 cup of cooked squash, black beans, chipotles, adobo, coconut aminos, paprika, cumin, red wine vinegar, plus salt and pepper to taste. Squeeze the bulb of roasted garlic into the food processor (there should be roughly 6 cloves total).
- Pulse the food processor a few times until you have a slightly dry and chunky paste. Scrape down the sides with a spatula to get everything combined and evenly puréed. Then, with the motor running, slowly drizzle the olive oil into the food processor through the feed tube. Once you have a thick and creamy dip consistency, you're good!
- Check the dip for seasoning and adjust if necessary (more salt, more chipotles, more vinegar etc). Serve the dip with the suggested garnishes or just as-is!
I made this dip for friends over the weekend and after the first bite one of my guests said “this is a delicious and perfectly balanced flavor” which tbh is how I think about Laura’s recipes in general. The seasoning/flavor combo is just so good. Love this dip with tortilla chips and on toast. Also think it would be great inside tacos or enchiladas
Hi, I’m just curious if you would recommend just roasting the squash seeds instead of pumpkin seeds?
Hi Ellen!
Yes, you could definitely do this as well. They should function in the same way.
-L
Made this today because I randomly found Honeynut squash at my local Costco and it made me think of this recipe! So good! If you’re like me and forget to grind the pumpkin seeds before adding the other ingredients don’t worry – it still comes out terrific!
Made this today as a last minute appetizer – I was lucky enough to have some leftover roasted squash already in the fridge from another dish, so the dip came together quickly after roasting the garlic. Nice amount of heat and salt and umami. Perhaps my squash wasn’t particularly sweet but found I needed to add a bit of sweetener (I went for maple syrup, but I imagine coconut sugar would work as well). I also added a splash of lime juice to bump up the acidity, in addition the the red wine vinegar (and because I like the combo of black beans and squash and lime). So many layers of flavour, I love the nuttiness the toasted pumpkin seeds provide in the background. Thanks for another delicious recipe Laura!
This is going into the fall rotation! So easy and delicious, with an unexpected and almost cheesy richness from the pumpkin seeds.
I have just made this, but I because of food sensitivities I used chickpeas instead of black beans. This recipe is going into the regular repertoire, on repeat as it’s delicious! I also found I was out of sweet paprika so I used smoked paprika. This is just delicious, I love it and am going to take some to a friends dinner party this weekend. Thanks Laura!
I’ve had this recipe saved for months and finally made it today. OMG it is so, so good. Cannot wait to snack on it all week!
I really enjoyed rich the flavor of this dip! My toddler also ate it which is always a win.
This looks amazing. How long does it keep? Can I make it on a Friday and serve it Saturday and Sunday? Can it be frozen?
Hi Karry,
You can keep this dip up to 5 days in the refrigerator. I don’t recommend freezing it. Although I’ve never done it myself, I think the texture would be impacted after thawing quite a bit.
-L
What do you think about serving this dip warm – like in a cast iron skillet?
Hi Carina,
I haven’t tried this myself, although it does sound super appealing. I don’t think anything would separate or impact the structural integrity of the dip, and all of these flavours would be great warm. I think you could go for it without any changes to the dip itself! If you’re inclined to, a sprinkle of dairy-free cheese (if you’re into that) would be delicious on top.
-L
Delicious! Made my kitchen smell amazing too! Thank you!
A perfect dip for fall! I used pureed pumpkin and with the black beans it was such a great consistency. Definitely tasted way better after sitting overnight in the fridge, so I would recommend making this a day ahead. Very flavorful – my husband has eaten most of it so he would definitely give this 5 stars. I found the olive oil to be a little overpowering, so might try something else to thin it out next time – maybe 1/2 olive oil and 1/2 broth?
I don’t know if I missed something but could barely eat any of it.
This looks amazing and I plan to make it this weekend. Do you think I could sub roasted pumpkin instead of squash? I got a pie pumpkin in my organic box this week so it’s what I have on hand. Thanks!
Hi Eva!
I think roasted pumpkin would be great. It might not be as sweet as the squash, but that aspect will work well with the other flavours going on in the dip.
-L
I thought about this multiple times a day since you posted it. And then when we got a kabocha in our CSA, it felt like fate. Made it exactly as written (except for the kabocha instead of butternut/honeynut), and was blown away by how flavorful it was. I am a big fan of dip for dinner and then using it for leftover wraps, bowls, etc., and this is now going into our dinner rotation. Another knockout recipe, thank yooouuuu!!!
What branch of chips or crackers is in your photo? They look tasty!
Hi Jeanne!
These are the sweet potato tortilla chips by the Food Should Taste Good brand. One of my favourites for dipping! Here’s a link to check out: https://www.foodshouldtastegood.com/product/sweet-potato
-L
wow, what a wonderful dip, black beams too, so many great ingredients that I can actually eat without feeling awful, can’t say that about almost any other dip, so thank you!
This was fabulous! I plan on bringing to it thanksgiving dinner this year; such a good “show off” appetizer, with the balanced flavour combination to match.
Would there be an issue with using already roasted pumpkin seeds ans skipping that step? Thanks!
Hi Sarah! You can definitely skip that roasting step if you have roasted pumpkin seeds on hand!
-L
This looks incredible! It’s Friday night, I’ve just poured a ‘I’m kinda feeling sorry for myself a bit’ gin, and I was scrolling through Facebook when your post came up recommended. I don’t follow you (yet – I will when I’m done sending this comment), but oh my goodness gracious me doesn’t this recipe tick all the food deliciousness boxes!! I am making this…. as soon as my impending gin (and Prosecco that’s currently chilling) hangover has abated. Hope you’re having an awesome Friday!
Looks scrumptious! What brand of chipotles in adobo do you use? Thank you!!
Hi Blake,
I used a brand called La Costeña this time. At most grocery stores local to me, they’ll only stock one brand, so I just grab whatever one they have.
-L
Ooh I can’t wait to make this! I had to eliminate my beloved tahini/sesame seeds for a few months, and this just might be my replacement dip! Thank you for always making gorgeous, delicious recipes.