How To Cook Winter Squash

What a wonderful time of year with so much fresh produce. I always feel so uplifted and abundant when I go to the farmer’s market! It’s a great time to put up food for the winter, when we inevitably have to shop for produce that comes from a long distance.

One food item I always put up in my garage is lots of squash – butternut, buttercup, acorn, spaghetti. It’s so easy to prepare and also tasty and satisfying. Put the squash in a box or paper bag or bushel basket. Avoid moving them around so they stay fresh longer.

One way to cook a squash is to put it in a dry crock pot, covered, on low for four hours. It comes out nice and moist and you don’t have to be around to watch it.

I also like to bake squash whole. Put on a dry pan, bake about an hour at 425 degrees. You can test it by putting in a small knife and making sure it’s tender. I then cut it up and put some cinnamon on it. You can also melt butter with a little sorghum or other sweetener and cinnamon and drizzle it on top of the squash.

Another easy method is to cut the squash up and steam it. If you do spaghetti squash this way you can scoop out the cooked squash, separate the strands out with a fork, and put tomato or marinara sauce over it. Tahini sauce is also a delicious complement to this kind of squash. It’s a great gluten-free substitute for pasta. Squash can be quickly steamed in an Instant Pot in just a few minutes.

Squash is also delicious roasted. I mix patty pan squash, butternut squash, Brussel sprouts, and beets or purple sweet potatoes. Be creative in your own combinations!

Please feel free to share your own ideas below. That way we can all learn even more.