Fall is squash season. They’re versatile, delicious and have a long shelf life making them a good pantry staple for when it’s too cold to go to the farmers market. If those weren’t enough reasons to explore squash recipes this season, I heard from you guys that there was an interest in learning more ways to use them! So when I saw a squash I’d never worked with before at the market I decided this post could be a learning experience all around.
First lesson I learned was I picked up a kabocha, or Japanese, squash. They’re completely edible except for the stem. The flavor of the flesh is similar to sweet potatoes and packed with Vitamin A, and the skin is also slightly sweet and a good source of fiber. Like any winter squash, the seeds make a tasty snack roasted with salt and some oil.
The second lesson was just because something is edible, doesn’t mean you should eat it. My go to for squashes is roasting the insides after separating the seeds and making a puree to use in soups or overnight oats. However, the guts of kabocha have an unpleasant soapy taste, which I learned after making an entire batch of soup. Per my minimal food waste philosophy, I did not throw it out and continue to build my stomach of steel by powering through my experiments, but I would not wish the same fate for you.
The third lesson was how to successfully work with kabocha squash. This post goes through recipes for a roasted squash side dish, savory seeds and a smooth soup.
While the soup was the most challenging to work on, it was ultimately the one one I’m most proud of. I wanted to incorporate some practices from Ayurveda eating, an Indian-based philosophy, that I’ve also been exploring. Ayurveda food includes a lot of warm spices to help with health and digestion, and I thought some would pair nicely with the flavor of the squash. Classic fall spices, like cinnamon and ginger, are included in Ayurveda, but turmeric was the wild card that added a nice flavor and complimented the color of the dish, too.
Roasted Squash
(this is a half recipe - can double)
Ingredients
½ kabocha squash
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ginger
1 tablespoon Canola oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Optional - sprinkle of brown sugar for something sweeter
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Wash and then cut a kabocha squash in half. Clean out seeds and guts before chopping into slices, and then 1 inch pieces. Toss squash with spices and oil in a bowl before putting on a sheet pan to roast for 20-30 minutes.
Savory Seeds
Ingredients
1 cup of rinsed and dried seeds (2 squashes worth)
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon salt
Pinch of pepper
Optional ¼ teaspoon of oregano
When you're cleaning the squash, separate the seeds from the guts and rinse. I like to soak mine in a salt bath for a few hours or over night before patting them dry.
Preheat oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit. Combine all ingredients in a bowl, transfer to a sheet pan and roast for 20-25 minutes at or until crispy.
Squash Soup
There’s two options for how to prep your squash for this soup. After cutting it in half and cleaning out the guts and seeds - you can cut the squash into fourths and roast for about 30 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit and take the skin off once it’s cooled OR peel the skin off before cutting the squash and dice to add directly in while you’re cooking the soup. As I mentioned, soup round one didn’t go so hot, so this recipe following the second preparation suggestion.
Ingredients
1 kabocha squash
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 tablespoon butter or ghee
1 can of coconut milk
1 large shallot (¾ for soup, ¼ set aside for garnish)
1-2 tablespoons of grated ginger
Vegetable stock
¼ cup of kale
Salt and pepper to taste
Optional pinch of nutmeg
Chop the shallot into thin slices, grate ginger and set aside. Prep and peel squash before roughly diced into 1 inch pieces. To start the soup, melt the butter in a pot over medium heat, add shallot and saute for about 1 minute before adding in the squash. Mix in the squash and a pinch of salt, then saute for a few more minutes before adding the cinnamon, nutmeg, turmeric, salt and pepper to taste and enough vegetable stock to cover the squash. Cover and let sit for about 15 minutes.
Once the squash is soft, add in the coconut milk and ginger before using either a normal or immersion blender to combine everything until smooth.
For garnish, saute the remaining shallot in a little butter or oil of your choice with the kale and add on top before serving. I let the shallots verge on burning around the edge for a crunchy topping.
As I mentioned the first batch of soup had the flesh, guts, as well as the skin all blended together. I truly believe the skin could be kept on for this soup and wouldn’t have impact the taste since the skin itself is mild and slightly sweet, but I couldn’t make another batch to test that theory without completely filling my fridge with squash soup. Another alternative that I’ve done with other squash skins is frying up the slices and adding a sprinkle of salt after like chips as an alternative way to minimize waste.
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It’s always exciting and challenging to work with new ingredients, no matter how similar they are to something I’ve worked with before. Even if a dish turns out far from what you thought it would, it’s more rewarding to get the recipe just right and be able to share that knowledge. It also means a lot to get suggestions from readers, so please keep them coming! I love to learn how others are minimizing their food waste, whether through cooking, storing or shopping tips.
Hope you’re all staying cozy as the weather cools down and I’m looking forward to some more time in the kitchen finding recipes to stay warm with.
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