Step 1: Crank your oven to 425°F and butter up that 9×13″ dish. I grabbed mine from my mom’s kitchen years ago and conveniently forgot to return it.

Step 2: Dump the olive oil in your skillet over medium heat. Toss in those chopped onions and let them hang out for about 10 minutes until they smell like heaven and look all golden. This is when my kids start wandering into the kitchen asking what’s for dinner.

Step 3: Chuck in the butternut squash cubes, smashed garlic, and salt. Sometimes this gets dry and starts sticking – that’s when you splash in the water. Stir it around every few minutes for another 10 minutes until you can stab the squash with a fork easily. Don’t let it turn to mush or you’ll hate yourself later.

Step 4: Scrape all that goodness into your buttered dish and spread it around so it’s not all lumpy in one corner like I did the first time.

Step 5: Crack those eggs into a bowl and whisk in the sour cream, Parmesan, basil, and pepper. It looks gross at first but keep whisking until it’s smooth. Pour this over your squash and watch it settle into all the cracks.

Step 6: Dump that mozzarella on top. I always add more than I think I need because cheese makes everything better.

Step 7: Stick it in the oven for 30 minutes. You’ll know it’s done when the cheese is all bubbly and golden and your house smells so good the neighbors might knock.

Step 8: Let it sit for maybe 5 minutes before you dive in. I never wait long enough and always burn my tongue because I’m impatient.