Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Acorn squash

One of my favorite parts of fall is the squash. Anyway you have it, I'll love it. Soup, salad, roasted, or pureed, I love squash. So when for lunch today all I had left in my pantry was an acorn squash, I was not at all disappointed. I was, however, a little perplexed as to how to cook it seeing how my oven mysteriously stopped functioning. Thank God for my heavy duty shallow fry pan I bought at Bed, Bath, and Beyond. Here's my recipe for a smoky, sweet variation of roasted acorn squash.

Pan Roasted Acorn Squash
-you can do this in the oven on 400 degrees if your oven actually works!
-if not, make sure to used your thickest bottom pan with a tight-fitting lid.
-1 acorn squash
-1 tsp of dried herbs (I used thyme and oregano)
-1 tsp cinnamon
-1/2 tsp each of paprika, cumin, and salt and pepper.
- honey to taste (I used prob. a tsp.)
- Roasted pumpkin seeds (opt.)

Cut the squash in half and scoop out the seeds and squash poop. Heat your pan to medium-high and spray with PAM. Put the squash in the pan cut-side up and put the lid on. Ten minutes later, flip the squash. Mix the herbs and spices together (all but the honey) and turn the squash up again. Sprinkle the mix evenly on the halves and drizzle with honey. Put the lid back on for another 15-20 minutes. Check occasionally with a fork for doneness (the honey should caramelize a little and the fork should slide through). Once done, let them cool a little and scrape out the orange flesh with a fork. Mash the flesh to mix the spices and eat like mashed sweet potatoes (add the seeds as a crunchy garnish if you wish)! Delicious and easy :)

2 comments:

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  2. I've never thought of pan-roasting squash before - thanks for the tip! I'm sure it would be lovely puréed into a soup with a little pancetta on top.

    - Lisa, A Pocketful of Chocolate

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