Put Winter Squash on the Menu

Put winter squash on the menu.

An excellent source of vitamin A, fiber, and beta carotene (among other things), winter squash is a fabulous fall ingredient. If you’ve never cooked with it before, we’ve got three good reasons to start now.

Pasta with Roasted Butternut Squash and Sage. Shaped like a bell and not very stringy, butternut squash lasts for months so you’ll have plenty of time to whip up this restaurant-quality pasta dish.

Spaghetti Squash Tacos. Spaghetti squash is an interesting variety that appears solid when cut raw but separates into individual strands, like spaghetti, when cooked. How fun is that? Look for yellow ones at the grocery or farm stand; they’re riper than the ivory ones.

Acorn squash. It would take a giant squirrel to stash one of these in its cheeks. But you can cut it in half and serve it as a tasty side dish using this easy recipe I got from my mom.

Baked Acorn Squash
As I started to write out this ‘recipe,’ I realized how very unscientific it is because how much you use of each ingredient will depend on how many you’re serving and how much butter and brown sugar you feel comfortable adding. So I’m just telling you what I do to use as a guide; adjust it to fit your family’s tastes.

Acorn squash (2 servings per squash)
2 Tbsp. butter
4 Tbsp. brown sugar

Preheat your oven to 375°. Pour just enough water in the bottom of a baking pan to cover it.  Cut squash in half length-wise and scoop out the seeds (you can rinse and roast them later like pumpkin seeds, if you want). Place cut side down in the pan and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and carefully flip squash over (you don’t want to splash yourself with scalding hot water). Put 1 Tbsp. of butter and 2 Tbsp. brown sugar in the middle of each half and return to the oven for another 30 minutes or until cooked through (a fork should easily penetrate the flesh). Serve and eat right out of the acorn.