Winter Squash

Winter squash can be a great treat, and I have to admit my experience with it is limited. I hope that someone else on this list will be able to add to this post for me (pretty please). Winter squash if young can be cooked and eaten much like summer squash. Just cut it up, season with salt, pepper and butter or grape seed oil and saute or grill for a short time. If your squash is in it's teens you will need to seed it. Then it can be cooked either like summer squash or winter squash. When it is fully mature and ripe I find that is is quicker to cut it up and cook it with moisture, while covered, like milk or butter and what ever flavors I want, whether it is the sweetness of honey or raw sugar or the savory of salt, pepper, onions, garlic, etc... The downside of cooking a full, mature squash is that it takes hours at 350. I fear cooking it at a higher temperature would result it the exterior burning while the interior is still raw. Unfortunately I do not have a time table to go with the poundage. The up side of cooking it whole is that you can stuff it. My husbands aunt has this great recipe for a stuffed Hubbard squash, that is to die for. She shared it with me and if I remember right she hollowed out the Hubbard, cutting it into pieces, along with a couple of other squashes, apples, craisins or raisins and maybe some nuts, put it all back into the Hubbard and baked it all day. She said she didn't use any meat in it. My inclination would be to add sausage to it. You can also use squashes to serve soups, or make them into a one pot wonder by baking a meatloaf inside. The small ones can even be used as individual dishes. When seasoning squash I am finding different squash has different character. Pumpkin and Hubbard lend toward sweet flavors. Acorn and Butternut can go either way. Scallop and Spaghetti lend toward savory. I also love to cook Scallop squash whole. I also find the flavor changes with the age of the squash. Scallop squash is rather bland when it is young, but when it is mature, it develops a delicate sweetness. My whole point is that squash should not be feared. They are a beautiful thing that has a lot of possibility. I found this website that has a lot more information on all that is squash. I hope it helps a bit more: http://whatscookingamerica.net/squash.htm Try it and enjoy. Please let me know how your squash experiences are.