Sunday, November 22, 2009

How To Prepare...SweetMeat Squash

Winter basically means squash in the produce world. They grow well in the cold weather and actually get better with a little storage. The storage give the flavor and sweetness time to develop. I was excited to use this SweetMeat Squash from Gee Creek Farm. SweetMeat is an heirloom variety that grows really well in the Pacific Northwest. They can grow to be quite large and are usually sold in chunks.

It's a little hard to find the nutritional facts about SweetMeat Squash. It's safe to assume that like most squash it is loaded with vitamins and minerals. Particularly vitamins A and C, folate, potassium and calcium.

This was the first time I worked with SweetMeat Squash, I was excited to use it and see the how the kids recieved it. When choosing squash don't let any growths or discoloring worry you too much, lookout for soft spots and mushy stems, those are bad signs to me. I decided to roast it, that really is the best way to serve squash in my opinion. This process can be used for almost any variety of squash.
Wash the squash and dry it off with a clean towel.
Break off the stem and us that spot as your point of entry. Be care doing this, make sure the blade of the knife is not facing you. You may want to use a folded dish towel in your other hand to protect it against slips. If your comfortable using a band saw or a hacksaw, you may want use one of those.
Slowly bring the knife down one side, then rotate the squash and cut down the other side. This really is the hardest step, so be very careful.
Hopefully yours will turn out something like this.
Then flip the squash flat side down, and cut into quarters.
This is when the seeds get scooped out. I recently discovered that all squash seeds, not just pumpking, can be cleaned, roasted and eaten. Some of them contain good amounts of omega fatty acids, protein and vitamin K.
Then choose the largest flat side and put it face down and cut the peice in half.
Place all the peices on a sheet pan. Coat them lightly with oil, and sprinkle liberally with salt. Then place in a 400 degree oven.
Pull the tray out when a butter knife pierces easily, and they have a delicious looking color to them. This will take about an hour.
Let them cool until you can handle them without burning yourself. Using a large spoon, scoop the flesh out of the skin. At ChildRoots I scoop them into the steam table, but at home i would recommend using a oven safe pan. Now would be the time to add some additional oil or butter, use your discrestion.
Then using a potato masher, mash the squash and taste for seasoning. Then put the pan back in the oven for 15-20 minutes.
Right before serving I like to garnish with parsley.
All the squashes have been loved by the kids at CR, and with winter setting in they'll be getting them once or twice a week until spring.