Accessible Winter Squash Recipes
How to cook those beautiful fall decorations.
Winter squash show up at the markets in early fall. With a palette of autumnal colors and thick hard skin, they make gorgeous displays of fall vegetables in the large grocery stores and farmers’ markets.
But accessing their golden flesh, underneath that hard exterior, can be a daunting task to a novice cook, or even an experienced cook without the right knife to crack it open.
Winter Squash, include the standard Butternut, Acorn Squash, Spaghetti Squash, Pumpkins, and many lesser-known varieties like Kabocha and Hubbard.
Each type has distinct characteristics to its flesh. Some squash are dry and starchy like sweet potatoes, and others are stringy and moist.
How to choose your squash.
The cooking qualities of winter squash vary depending on their breeding. Spaghetti squash have stringy flesh. Carving pumpkins are watery when cooked because they have been selected so that they grow to enormous sizes.
Butternut squash has sweet orange flesh and is often the squash used in commercially canned pumpkin.
If you are at the farmers market, ask as many questions as you can, the obscure, heirloom varieties are fun to try, but their qualities are different. I haven’t eaten enough squash to make this a rule, but the ugly ones usually taste better than the pretty ones.
If the squash is firm and hard and your house isn’t too warm (less than 70 °F), you can bring them home and let it sit on the counter for several weeks, giving you a beautiful fall decoration, until you are ready to cook. For more extended storage, keep them in the basement or cool garage.
How to cook a large winter squash.
Hard winter squash is downright dangerous to cut open without the right tools. With their rounded edges and smooth skin, they can slide all over your cutting board.
If you don’t feel comfortable cutting it, the easiest thing to do is cook it whole and cut it afterward.
If you can cut it in half, it will shorten the cooking time. Scoop out the seeds and place it cut side down on a parchment-lined baking sheet first.
Turn on your oven to 375 °F, and put the whole squash on a pan, and put it in the oven. No need to preheat, it’s going to take a while to cook. After 45–60 minutes, open the oven and press down on the outside of the squash. If it is soft, there will be a dent where you touched it, and you can take it out. If not, let it cook and check it every 15 minutes.
Let it cool at least 30 minutes, then cut the squash in half and remove the seeds. Gently scoop out the flesh without getting any of the skin.
You can use the puree in any pumpkin recipe. Two cups of puree equate to 1–15 ounce can of pumpkin. If the puree is stringy, you can puree it in a food processor or blender. Refrigerate the puree and freeze any that you can’t use within three to four days.
How to cut up butternut squash.
The shape of butternut allows it to be peeled and cut before cooking. Cut the squash in half, separating the straight top portion from the bulbous bottom. Peel the sections with a vegetable peeler or a knife. Depending on how thick your peeler peels, you might want to go over the squash two or three times to make sure you remove all of the light-colored skin. The top portion of the squash is ready to be cut into cubes.
For the bottom, cut it in half, remove the seeds, cut into strips and cut each strip into one-inch lengths. The bottom pieces won’t be perfect squares, but after cooking, you can’t tell. The larger you cut the cubes, the longer they will take to cook, but this allows for more caramelization on the outside of each piece.
The Simplest Recipes
The sweet and spicy combination of squash and hot peppers is my favorite. Once you have your cooked squash puree for this recipe, it comes together quickly and doesn’t need simmering time.
Southwestern Winter Squash Soup
- 2 tablespoon oil
- ½ large onion, chopped
- 2–3 small bell peppers, chopped
- 1–2 hot pepper, chopped (optional)
- 1–2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 tablespoons oregano
- ¼ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 4 cups winter squash puree
- 1–2 cups water or stock
In a soup pot, sauté the onion and peppers in the oil over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Add the hot peppers, garlic, oregano, cumin, and salt, stir and continue cooking for 2–3 more minutes. Add a little water if the vegetables start to brown. Add the squash puree and 1 cup of water. Puree with an immersion blender to blend in the vegetables and add additional water to reach your preferred consistency. Taste and add salt and pepper if needed.
In this spaghetti squash recipe, I cut the squash in half and roasted the halves. You could also roast it whole, as described above.
Spaghetti squash might look like spaghetti, but for me, it is not replacing pasta. I do enjoy this side dish with sage and walnuts.
Spaghetti Squash with Brown Butter, Sage and Walnuts
- 1 medium (2½-to-3-pound) spaghetti squash
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 7–8 sage leaves, coarsely chopped
- salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- ½ cup walnuts, roughly chopped
- 1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese, for garnish
Preheat the oven to 400 °F. Cut the squash in half, and scoop out the seeds. Transfer the squash to a parchment-lined baking sheet, cut-sides down. Bake the squash until the flesh is tender, about 1 hour. Let the squash cool until you can handle it. Using a fork, scoop the springs out of the squash and reserve in a separate bowl. In a large sauté pan, melt 3 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Add the walnuts and sage leaves, cook until they are toasted and the butter has started to bubble, 2 to 3 minutes. When the butter is slightly brown, turn off the heat, combine with the spaghetti squash, and toss together. Season with salt and pepper, garnish with the Parmesan and serve.
Roasted Butternut Squash Salad
- 1 butternut squash, cut into cubes, 3–4 cups
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup walnuts
- ½ cup raisins or dried cranberries, chopped
- ¼ cup sliced red onion
- 3–4 cups, spinach or chopped leafy greens
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon red or white wine vinegar
- salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
- ¼ cup crumbled goat cheese
Preheat your oven to 400 °F. Toss the butternut squash cubes with the oil and ½ teaspoon salt. Spread out on a parchment-lined baking sheet, in a single layer, and cook in the oven for about 20–25 minutes, until tender. While cooking the squash, in the same oven toast the nuts until fragrant, about 5 minutes. In a large bowl, combine cooked squash, nuts, dried cranberries, red onion and greens, drizzle with olive oil and vinegar, season with salt and pepper. Toss the salad gently and transfer to a serving platter or bowl and top with the crumbled goat cheese.
Don’t be intimidated by winter squash.
These beautiful fall fruits can decorate your table, but they are also delicious and easy to cook, once you know what you are doing. They are sweet and savory, and once cooked, you can use the puree in any recipe that calls for canned pumpkin.