Winter squash was not something I liked very much when I was a child. Maybe it was the way my mother cooked it, I'm not sure. To me it was just blah and tasteless and had no redeeming qualities. As an adult however I have fallen right in love with it!
There are many different varieties of Winter Squash. You will probably be familiar with Butternut Squash (which is my favourite). This one is called a Buttercup Squash. Its about the size of a large billiard ball. My friend Tina gifted us with a couple.
Winter Squashes are characterised with a hard inedible rind/ skin, and seeds, which some people like to toast and roast like Pepita's, which are the seeds of a pumpkin, which is another variety of Winter Squash.
This was my first time eating this variety of Winter Squash and let me tell you, they are as hard as bowling balls! The hardest part of prepping them was cutting them in half. I cannot imagine peeling them.
It might have been easier if I had a cleaver, but alas I don't so I just used my heavy chef's knife and cleaved it into one side of the squash through the middle . . .
And then I kept hammering the knife and the squash down onto the counter top until I had finally broken it in two.
Yes it was that hard. It was pretty clear that I wasn't going to be able to peel it and so I decided to roast the halves in the oven . . .
Which actually worked out really well. Once I had cut them in half and removed all the seeds and fibres, I placed them into a baking dish, cut sides up.
I seasoned the cut sides with a bit of salt and black pepper and I sprinkled some ground cinnamon over top . . .
Then I dropped a knob of butter into each cavity and drizzled in some pure Maple syrup.
I added boiling water to the dish to come about 1/4 of the way up the sides of the squash . . .
And then covered the whole dish tightly with some aluminium foil . . . baked them for half an hour . . .
Uncovered them and then baked them for a further 15 minutes. The insides were soft and tender and golden brown . . .
having absorbed some of that butter and maple syrup . . .
You could eat this right out of the skins . . .
But I actually used a teaspoon and scraped the insides out onto our dinner plates and let me tell you . . . it was gorgeous. Absolutely flipping gorgeous. I wish I had some more to cook now! I guess I will have to check at the farmer's market for some! This is a new favourite!
Yield: variable
Maple & Butter Baked Squash
This is simple and delicious. The hardest part is cutting the squash in half! You can make as many servings or as few as you wish to make.
ingredients:
For each two servings
- 1 buttercup squash
- 2 TBS butter
- 2 TBS maple syrup
- salt and black pepper to taste
- ground cinnamon
- boiling water
instructions:
How to cook Maple & Butter Baked Squash
- Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F, gas mark 4.
- Wipe your squash clean and then cut it in half through the middle. Be really careful when you are doing this. I put it on a damp cloth on the cutting board so that it wouldn't roll. I also put on my cut proof gloves. I took my sharpest knife and made a cut into one side of it by slamming the knife down onto it and then I banged the squash against the counter again and again, until the knife worked its way through the squash. Then I used a metal tablespoon to scoop out and discard the seeds and fibres in the centre.
- Once you have the squash halved and seeded place it into a baking dish large enough to hold it. Sprinkle the cut sides with salt, pepper and cinnamon. Put 1 TBS of butter and 1 TBS maple syrup into the centre cavity of each squash, Pour a bit of boiling water around them in the dish. Cover the dish tightly with foil.
- Roast in the oven for about 30 minutes. Uncover, baste and roast for a further 10 to 15 minutes until the flesh is knife tender.
- You can either serve them in the skins or scrape the flesh out. They are delicious either way!
I think this method of cooking would work with any of the smaller Winter Squashes. I hope you will give it a go. I think you will quickly come to see that this is an incredibly delicious way to enjoy them!
Up Tomorrow: Gammon Steak, Egg & Chips
I really need to learn to label things better before I put them into the freezer. I package them really well, so that they are protected from freezer burn, but most of the time (with a few exceptions) I don't bother to label them, thinking that I will remember what the package contains.
As much as I think I will . . . I invariably never do! What's up with that! The worst is leftovers. I really should label them. You cannot imagine the number of times we end up with a complete mystery meal for supper because I couldn't tell what was in the container I am thawing out!
Oh well, who doesn't enjoy a nice surprise every now and then! Yesterday I thought I was thawing out chicken thighs, but it ended up that I was thawing out chicken breasts. Not a problem really, they were both chicken, but I had to completely change my meal plan out because thighs and breasts do require a somewhat different approach to cooking!
Breasts can tend to dry out whereas thighs stay moist and succulent. They are actually my favourite cut of thicken, the thighs . . . but I like breasts too.
This is a chicken variant on our favourite green bean casserole. It uses no cream soup, just a lush homemade cream sauce, flavoured with chicken stock, milk, thyme and onion.
You could of course use a can of soup if you wanted to, but I find it is just as easy to make my own sauce.
There is no need to cook the chicken first. Simply slice it into strips and lay it into the bottom of a casserole dish.
On top of the chicken you layer on thawed cut frozen green beans. You could of course use a tin of cut green beans, drained, but I like the frozen ones. They taste fresher.
The sauce gets poured over the whole thing then . . . I spread it out to cover with the back of a spoon.
Finally you sprinkle on top a layer of either buttered herb stuffing crumb or buttered crushed croutons.
Herb stuffing crumbs are a bit hard to come by over here. I like these. They are rather expensive, but they last a long time, especially if you keep them in the freezer.
Alternately you can use crushed croutons, or you can make your own herb stuffing crumbs and keep them in the freezer ready to use for recipes such as this. Its really not that hard and its a lot cheaper than any other alternative.
Once all of your ingredients are layered in the dish, simply cover it tightly with foil and then bake for half an hour, uncover and bake for a further 15 minutes at which time it should be bubbling, the chicken will be cooked through and the crumb topping will be nicely golden brown.
Chicken & Green Bean Casserole
Yield: 2 - 3
Rich and delicious, this simple casserole makes a great mid-week supper dish.
ingredients:
For the sauce:
- 2 TBS butter
- 2 TBS flour
- 2 TBS minced fresh onion
- 240ml chicken stock (1 cup)
- 240ml milk (1 cup)
- 1/4 tsp dried thyme
- salt and black pepper to taste
You will also need:
- 2 large chicken breast fillets.
- 3 TBS butter, melted
- 45g herb stuffing crumbs or crushed garlic croutons (1/2 cup)
- 150g frozen cut green beans, thawed (1 cup)
instructions:
How to cook Chicken & Green Bean Casserole
- First make the sauce. Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the onion and cook over low heat until softened, without colouring. Add the flour and cook, stirring for one minute. Slowly whisk in the stock and then the milk. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture comes to a boil, bubbles and thickens. Cook for one minute further and then remove from the heat. Stir in thyme and season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.
- Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Butter an 8 inch square baking dish.
- Slice the chicken fillets crosswise into 1 inch strips. Place them in the bottom of the baking dish. Top with the thawed beans. Pour the sauce to cover all. Mix the melted butter and stuffing crumbs. Sprinkle this evenly over top. Cover tightly with foil.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake for 15 minutes longer, until the chicken is cooked through, the casserole is bubbling and the top is golden brown. Serve hot.
This is really and truly delicious. I love simple casseroles such as this. For Todd I simply add some mashed potatoes (I keep a bag of frozen ones in the freezer just for this purpose) and I will cook an additional vegetable for both of us to enjoy. It makes a lovely mid week supper. If you are wanting to feed more people simply double the recipe ingredients!
Up tomorrow: Maple Buttered Squash
This recipe for this delicious pie has been sitting in my big blue binder for nigh onto 40 years or so now. Yes . . . unfortunately I AM that old! I don't know how it happened either . . .
My father's favourite pie has always been raisin pie. But by that I mean the old fashioned two crust raisin pie, with a rich and sweet sticky raisin filling. I confess to having a certain fondness for it myself. We are real pie aficionado's in my family. If its in a pie, you can be certain we will be crazy about it . . . within reason of course. Let it suffice to say that (up to this point) I have never met a pie I did not like!
You will need a baked 9 inch pie crust for this pie. I used my Butter & Lard Pastry for this. (Scroll down the page.) Its my favourite pastry recipe.
The filling is very easy to make. It is a lovely and lush basic cream filling made with sugar and milk, egg yolks, etc. and flavoured with a tiny bit of nutmeg.
Add to that an abundance of sticky sweet raisins . . . and at the very end, a quantity of sour cream . . . and you have a really delicious filling.
Gilding the top is a three egg white meringue, nice and fluffy and tall, just like what you might see in am American Diner!
Ideally you should chill it in the refrigerater for at least 3 hours prior to cutting it, but the light was fading and I needed to take a picture of it while I still could.
I really hate the way the light changes in the colder months . . . it means I have to take my photos earlier and earlier in the day. I suppose I should have left it in the refrigerator overnight and taken the photos in the morning, but . . .
I promised to show you the recipe today! I will take another photo of it all set up tomorrow and add it to the end of this post . . . so you can see how lovely it really looks.
That's not to say that these aren't drool worthy photos anyways . . . because they surely are.
Todd is actually eating a piece as I write this and he has just exclaimed about how delicious it is!
I call that a win! Oh, I do hope I can resist this . . . but somehow I don't think I will really be able to. I don't think I have enough willpower!
Yield: 8
Raisin & Sour Cream Meringue Pie
A lush sour cream filling dappled with soft plump raisins. This is pretty wonderful.
ingredients:
For the filling:
- 135g caster sugar (3/4 cup)
- 4 TBS cornflour (corn starch)
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 480ml whole milk (2 cups)
- 3 large free-range egg yolks slightly beaten
- 230g raisins (1 1/2 cups)
- 120g sour cream (1 cup)
For the meringue:
- 3 large free-range egg whites
- 1/4 tsp cream of tartar
- 6 TBS caster sugar
You will also need:
- 1 baked 9-inch pastry pie shell
instructions:
How to cook Raisin & Sour Cream Meringue Pie
- Combine the sugar, cornflour, salt and nutmeg in a saucepan. Stir in the milk, blending all of the ingredients together until smooth. Cook, stirring constantly, over moderate heat, until the mixture comes to the boil. Boil for a minute and then remove from the heat. Temper the egg yolks with about a quarter cup of the hot mixture. Whisk this back into the remaining mixture in the saucepan along with the raisins. Cook until the mixture bubbles. Remove from the heat, stir in the sour cream to combine and then pour the whole lot into the baked pie crust.
- Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F. gas mark 6.
- In a clean bowl, and with clean beaters, beat the egg whites and the cream of tartar together until soft peaks form. Gradually add the sugar, still beating, one tablespoon at a time, beating at high speed until stiff peaks form. Spoon over the hot filling in the pie, spreading it all the way to the edge of crust to cover completely. Place on a baking tray and bake in the heated oven for 8 to 10 minutes until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack and then in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 hours before serving.
With its crisp flaky crust, lush creamy filling studded with raisins and its sweet and fluffy golden brown meringue topping, this is a real winner of a pie! I hope you will make it. I guarantee you won't be disappointed!
Now that it has had overnight to set up.
Now doesn't that look great??? I can promise you that it is!
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