Preheat oven to 375 degrees F

Wash and peel the squash.

Cut the squash in half, lengthwise, and remove the seeds.

Drizzle the squash with extra virgin olive oil and kosher salt.

Place the squash into the oven (cavity side down) for about 20 minutes. This will give it time to soften a bit, without it fully cooking.

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, add the butter, thyme, apple cider vinegar, garlic, black pepper, and smoked paprika, and allow it to slowly cook over low heat, stirring occasionally until completely melted.

After twenty minutes, remove the squash from the oven and allow it to cool for 5 minutes, or until it’s cool enough to handle with your hands

Transfer the squash to a cutting board and make gentle crosswise cuts down the squash. Tip *use skewers, chopsticks, or whatever you have on hand as guards on the sides to ensure that your cuts do not go all the way through.

Once cut, use a small pastry brush to coat the squash in the butter mixture, making sure to gently get between the slices for maximum flavor.

Return the squash to the oven and roast for an additional 40 minutes. As the squash cooks, the butter glaze will collect at the bottom of your baking sheet, so every fifteen minutes or so use your pastry brush or a baster to collect the juices and coat the squash as it cooks.

Finally, remove the squash from the oven and top as desired. For this recipe, I used goat cheese crumbles and beef bacon crumbles. I also topped with additional fresh thyme.