Winter Squash Recipes

For our first day working at Common Thread Community Farm, my group spent most of our time cutting many different kinds of winter squash, such as Acorn, Delicata, and Pumpkin. Squash is packed with good nutrients such as beta carotene, lutein, and potassium and eating them can help protect our vision and control blood pressure (Nearing,http://www.besthealthmag.ca/eat-well/nutrition/6-reasons-to-eat-more-squash). You also don’t have to worry about these kinds of squash going bad because they can be stored for 3 to 4 months after being harvested. Besides pumpkin pie, I’ve never really eaten any kind of squash so I found some recipes using winter squash that I’ll hopefully get to try out in the next couple weeks:

From Allrecipies.com: Garlic Delicata, serves 8

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/garlic-delicata/detail.aspx

Ingredients

3 Delicata squash

1/4 cup olive oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Oil a 9x13 inch baking dish.

2. Peel delicata squash, slice in half lengthwise, and remove seeds. Cut into 1/2 inch thick slices. Place in baking dish, and toss with olive oil, garlic, and parsley.

3. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until tender.

From Eating Well Magazine: Southwestern Stuffed Acorn Squash, serves 6

http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/southwestern_stuffed_acorn_squash.html

Ingredients

3 acorn squash, (3/4-1 pound each)

5 ounces bulk turkey sausage

1 small onion, chopped

1/2 medium red bell pepper,chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 cups chopped cherry tomatoes

1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed (see Tip)

1/2 teaspoon salt

Several dashes hot red pepper sauce, to taste

1 cup shredded Swiss cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly coat a large baking sheet with cooking spray.

2. Cut squash in half horizontally. Scoop out and discard seeds. Place the squash cut-side down on the prepared baking sheet. Bake until tender, about 45 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, lightly coat a large skillet with cooking spray; heat over medium heat. Add sausage and cook, stirring and breaking up with a wooden spoon, until lightly browned, 3 to 5 minutes. Add onion and bell pepper; cook, stirring often, until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in garlic, chili powder and cumin; cook for 30 seconds. Stir in tomatoes, beans, salt and hot sauce, scraping up any browned bits. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer until the tomatoes are broken down, 10 to 12 minutes.

4. When the squash are tender, reduce oven temperature to 325°. Fill the squash halves with the turkey mixture. Top with cheese. Place on the baking sheet and bake until the filling is heated through and the cheese is melted, 8 to 10 minutes.