butternut squash or pumpkin recipes

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Permalink Reply by Paul Drowns on September 11, 2010 at 7:58am

Many other cultures utilize pumpkins as vegetables rather than carving them or making pies. The French make wonderful soups, and this Afghani recipe is a favorite of mine because this time of year, the season for tomatoes and pumpkins coincide. Rouge vif d'temps, the flattened bright orange-red pumpkins are especially delicious. Homemade raw milk yogurt, drained, makes wonderful sauce for this dish.



Kadu Bouranee (Afghani pumpkin with two sauces)

Ingredients:

For the pumpkin
2 pounds of fresh pumpkin or winter squash, peeled and cut into 2 to 3 inch cubes
1/4 cup of ghee or extra virgin olive oil

For the sweet tomato sauce
1 teaspoon of crushed garlic
1 cup of water
1/2 teaspoon of sea salt
1/4 cup of sugar or local honey, or to taste
1/2 cup of tomato sauce, preferably homemade
1/2 teaspoon of freshly grated ginger root
1 teaspoon of toasted and freshly ground coriander seed
1/4 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper

For the yogurt sauce
1/4 teaspoon crushed garlic
1/4 teaspoon of sea salt
3/4 cup of plain whole milk yogurt

For a garnish
Dry mint leaves, crushed

Method:

Heat the oil or ghee in a large heavy skillet and sauté the pumpkin for several minutes until lightly browned on all sides.
In a bowl, mix together the ingredients for the tomato sauce and then add it to the browned pumpkin.
Simmer over low heat until the pumpkin is cooked and most of the liquid has evaporated, about 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, mix together the ingredients for the yogurt sauce and set it aside.
To serve, spread half the yogurt sauce on a plate and spoon the pumpkin on top. Spoon the remaining yogurt sauce over the top and garnish with the crushed mint.

Permalink Reply by katie simonovich on November 14, 2010 at 1:09pm

this is a very simple recipe, but works great with any winter squash! The brown butter gives a wonderful nutty flavor

about 2 pounds firm winter squash/ pumpkins
3-4 T of butter
1-2 T chopped fresh herbs (I like rosemary and sage, or thyme and parsley together)
1-2 cup water (you can sub with broth)
salt and freshly ground black pepper

* Squash. If using delicata squash, you can choose to leave the skin on, otherwise you can peel with veggie peeler, cut it lengthwise in half, and scrape out the seeds with a spoon. Cut each piece lengthwise in half again, then crosswise into 1/2-inch -thick slices. Other types of squash should be peeled (may be easier to use a knife for the thick skinned squashes), seeded, cut into 1-inch wedges, then sliced 1/2-inch thick.

* I save all seeds out of squash/ pumpkins toss them with salt, pepper, and paprika and bake them for 5-10min in a 350* oven, toss after a few minutes- keep a close eye because they get done quick! Great snack!

* Herb Butter. Melt butter in a large (12-inch) skillet over low heat. Add the herbs and cook, stirring, until the butter just begins to turn golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes.

* Cooking the squash. Add the squash to the skillet, stirring occasionally, over medium heat. Wait for a nice brown to form on each of the sides. You may need to add more butter/ oil to the pan to keep from sticking. After you have a nice crust, lower heat and add the water/ broth. Bring to a low simmer and cover. Cooking time varies to 15-25 minutes till soft. Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed.

Permalink Reply by Briana Ryan on December 16, 2010 at 7:01pm

I think I originally got this recipe from Epircurious (although I can't be sure...) but I've made a bunch of changes to it.  I apologize in advance if it isn't exact but it has become my favorite butternut squash soup of all time!

 

Roasted Butternut Squash & Sage Soup with Sage Breadcrumbs

serves 6

 

Roasting the squash:

Olive oil to coat the squash when baking (not sure exactly how much but I’d say approximately 1 ½ to 2 tablespoons)

4 cups peeled & flesh scooped butternut squash cut into 1 inch cubes

1-2 tablespoons fresh chopped thyme

2-3 cloves garlic, minced

½ teaspoon coarse sea salt

 

Prepping the soup:

1 ½ tablespoons olive oil (to sauté the onions)

1 ½ tablespoons of butter (or Earth Balance to keep it vegan)

2 cups chopped onions (I use yellow)

2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley

2 teaspoons (or so) of fresh chopped sage

1 teaspoon coarse sea salt

5 cups veggie broth

1 cup apple juice (I use the Santa Cruz unsweetened, organic brand)

1 teaspoon nutmeg

Pinch or two of cloves

 

Breadcrumbs:

2-3 crust-less slices of whole grain bread (I use La Brea bakery’s whole grain loaf and cut them about 1 ½ inches thick)

4 teaspoons butter (or Earth Balance)

1 tablespoon freshly chopped sage

 

Cooking the Soup (I like to cook the soup the day before to let the flavors absorb):

Preheat over to 400 degrees.

 

Combine squash, 1 ½ to 2 tablespoons olive oil, minced garlic, ½ teaspoon salt & thyme in a large pyrex baking dish.  Roast for about 40 minutes making sure to smoosh around about every 10 minutes.

 

When the squash is about 10 minutes from being done, melt butter & 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil in a large soup pot over med-high heat.  Add onions, parsley & sage.  Sauté for around 7-10 minutes.  Add roasted squash, salt (1 teaspoon) and sauté for about 5 minutes more.  Add 5 cups of veggie stock + 1 cup apple juice. Bring to a boil then reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 25 minutes.  Cool slightly and working in batches, puree soup in food processor.  If you need to thin the soup a bit, add more broth and/or apple juice depending on taste.  Also add salt to taste (if needed).

 

Breadcrumbs:

Place bread in food processor, blend until fine crumbs form but some coarser ones remain.  Cook butter in large non stick skillet over medium heat until golden – about 2 mins.  Add breadcrumbs and fresh sage.  Cook til crisp, about 10 minutes.  Can do this part up to 4 hours ahead.

Permalink Reply by Marianne Smith on May 8, 2012 at 8:42am

Here's a link for 2 different recipes for squash

http://maryshealthymeals.blogspot.com/2012/04/harvest-recipe-butter...