With the onset of cold weather and cloud laden skies over lea ess gray trees, it is the perfect time to brighten our dinner tables with the bountiful harvest of winter squash. Cream, gold, orange and green squash comes in many types offering a variety of avors and textures to complement your meals. From a savory soup to a sweet pumpkin pie, the golden esh is very versatile.
Not only does squash visibly brighten a dinner plate, they are full of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants that can help you stay bright and healthy through the long winter months. Like carrots, squash are high in alpha and beta carotenes, a pro-vitamin the body converts to vitamin A, offering a boost to the immune system. They are also a very good source of vitamin C.
The most recognized winter squash is probably pumpkin. From Halloween through Christmas and many other cold winter nights, we anticipate ending holiday meals with a hot mug of cider or coffee served with thick slice of pumpkin pie. In addition to our favorite pumpkin rolls and pumpkin pancakes, it is very versatile for savory dishes, such as pumpkin fritters, pumpkin risotto or chipotle pumpkin soup. The next time you have to clean out a pumpkin to carve a fall decoration or Halloween Jack-o’-lantern consider roasting the pumpkin seeds for a delicious crunchy snack. With just 10 minutes of simple prep and 50 minutes baking in the oven, you can create a healthy snack seasoned with your favorite avors.
Butternut is a more solid squash with a dense rich esh containing a small well of seeds. The outer rind is thick but softens when cooked or grilled so that it is edible. The butternut squash in its most basic form, split in half and grilled or baked, is a popular side dish. It also works well chopped, mashed or pureed offering an abundance of opportunities.
The butternut squash is similar in avor to pumpkin becoming fuller and sweeter avored as it ripens. When selecting one, if the outer rind of the squash is shiny, it was picked too early before fully ripened and will not be as sweet as a matte nished fruit.
Acorn squash is my favorite both in avor and presentation. When thinly sliced across the whole acorn squash the pronounced lobes and wide deep seed well give the slices the appearance of a child’s ower drawing. Sautéed or baked, the slices create a festive look when plated.
I was introduced to a popular squash dish by Chef John Strand of Accent Personal Chef Services. This dish creates two baked acorn squash bowls that are perfect on their own or lled. Cut the acorn squash into equal halves and remove the seeds and strings from the well. From the pointed end of the squash, cut off just enough rind that this half of the bowl will sit upright. Rub the outer edges of the rind lightly with olive oil and place cut edge facing up in a baking pan creating two squash bowls. Season the outer rims and inside bowl of the squash with sea salt, pepper and tarragon, or customize spices to suite your taste. Although many people may choose cinnamon, brown sugar and nutmeg avors, the lightly sweet nutty squash is also very suited to savory spices. Fill the bowl with several pats of real butter. Place in an oven preheated to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and cook for 1 hour. Test center with fork for tenderness and return to oven for 15 minute intervals until tender.
The bowl style is delightfully simple to serve with guests using their forks to pull the cooked squash away from the rind and into the center to dip into the buttery sauce there. If the baked acorn squash is being served with a large meal, you may prefer to cut it into quarters before serving.
Last but de nitely not least, is the spaghetti squash. When cooked, the esh inside the squash comes loose in strands the shape and consistency of spaghetti noodles cooked al dente. It makes a nice dish on its own, or an excellent substitute for pasta mixed with your favorite sauces. While these “noodles” make a great addition to layered casseroles and vegetarian dishes, like pumpkins, the large seeds inside can also be roasted and eaten.
With spaghetti squash and many other varieties, the rinds are thick and dif cult to cut, but well worth the effort. Whether cooking the squash whole in a microwave or splitting it in half and baking in an oven, there are some excellent tips online to help make your cooking experience much easier.
Considered a powerhouse of nutrition, the ability to include the sunshine golden esh of squash in such a variety of recipes is sure to help ward off any winter doldrums.
Lynn Laird is a writer, fine artist and selfprofessed bon vivant living in Bossier. With “Flair for Cooking,” she seeks out interesting ingredients and techniques to help make everyday meals just a touch more fabulous. She can reached at flairforcooking@gmail. com.
