Squash recipes

Jessica Stecher, produce manager for the Marshland and Maltby markets as well as the RedRoof Produce mobile farm stand in Snohomish County, shared the following two recipes from her 73-year-old aunt, Freeda Stecher, who lives with her husband, Jack, 75, in the Snohomish valley.

"I raised three teenage boys and a girl," Freeda Stecher said. "I could cook a whole squash and there wouldn't be any leftovers. I'm used to big appetites."

This recipe calls for a large hubbard squash, at least 8 inches in diameter. Use only ¼ of the squash if you want enough to serve four people. You can easily double, triple or quadruple the recipe for larger groups.



Mashed hubbard squash



1/4 hubbard squash



1 cup water



1/4; cup brown sugar



2-3 tablespoons butter

Cut the squash into quarters, scoop out and discard seeds. Peel one squash quarter and cut the squash into 2-inch squares. Put the squares in a large sauce pan and add about 1 cup of water. Boil uncovered until tender. Strain and thoroughly mash the squash with a potato masher or hand mixer.

Add brown sugar and butter and mix thoroughly.



Stuffed spaghetti squash



1 spaghetti squash



1 white onion, diced



1 red or green bell pepper, diced



1 tomato, diced



1 teaspoon ground rosemary or your favorite seasoning



1 1/2 cups ground beef, browned



Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cut the squash in half, scoop out and discard the seeds. Mix onion, bell pepper, tomato, rosemary, salt and pepper into ground beef and fill each squash half with the beef mixture.

Bake until the squash, vegetables and meat are cooked and heated through, about 45 minutes or until the squash is fork tender.

Garnish with parsley or chopped green onions or chives.



This recipe comes from the Puget Sound Fresh Web site and Shelley Pasco-Verdi, co-owner of Whistle Train Farm, a "certified naturally grown" 18-acre farm in Kent.

See www.pugetsoundfresh.org or www.whistlingtrainfarm.com for more about the farm.



Baked winter squash soup



2 acorn squash



2 butternut squash



8 tablespoons butter



8 teaspoons dark brown sugar



3 carrots, halved



1 large onion, thinly sliced



10 cups chicken stock



3/4 teaspoon ground mace



3/4 teaspoons ground ginger



Pinch of cayenne pepper



Salt to taste



Sour cream and chives for garnish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut squashes in half lengthwise. Scoop out and discard seeds. Place squash halves, skin side down, in shallow roasting pan. Place 1 tablespoon butter and 1 teaspoon brown sugar in the cavity of each squash half. Arrange the carrots and onion slices around squash. Pour 2 cups of stock in the pan, cover tightly with foil and bake for 2 hours.

Remove pan from oven. Allow vegetables to cool slightly. Scoop squash pulp out of skins and place in soup pot. Add carrots, onions and the cooking liquid. Add remaining 8 cups chicken stock, mace, ginger, cayenne and salt. Stir well and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered for 10 minutes.

Puree the soup, in batches, in a blender or food processor, until smooth. Return to pot, adjust seasonings, heat through and serve.



This is a favorite soup of the Features department at The Herald, for both dinner parties and to bring to work on Soup Day.

It's based on a recipe from the Algonquin Hotel in New York, where the great writers of the 1920s hung out at their round table, trading quips.

The squash soup



2 tablespoons olive oil



1 yellow onion, chopped



1 pear, peeled, cored and chopped



1 stalk celery, diced



8 cups chicken or vegetable broth



3 cups butternut squash (see note)



1 russet potato, cut in pieces



1 head cauliflower, separated in florets



2 teaspoons curry powder or more



1 cup sour cream (or less)



3 green onions, diced

Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large soup pot on medium heat. Saute onion, celery and chopped pear for 4 minutes.

Add curry powder and stir for a minute.

Add 6 cups broth, increase heat and bring to a boil.

Add squash, potato and cauliflower. Bring back to boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until soft.

Puree in batches in the blender or with an immersible hand-held blender. The hand-held blender is easier to use because there's no messy pouring and the soup stays in the pot.

Reheat. Thin if desired with more broth, up to 2 cups. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with a dollop of sour cream and sprinkle with chopped green onions.

Makes 8 to 10 servings.

Notes: Butternut squash is difficult to cut up and hard to peel when raw. It's easier to cook the squash first; try roasting it in the oven at 350 until soft or the microwave.

Don't be afraid to be liberal with the curry powder.

A chopped apple can be substituted for the pear.

Experiment with other winter squash. This soup is a rich pumpkin color; other squashes may result in a somewhat less than appetizing hue.



Storing squash



Winter squash, if properly stored, can keep until spring. Take this sage advice from the "Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening" by J. I. Rodale:

Select only hard-shelled, sound squashes for storage. Well-ripened winter squash is almost unmarked by pressure with the edge of a thumb nail.

Be sure squashes are clean and dried carefully and store them in a cellar or basement where the temperature remains 40 to 50 degrees. It's possible to store them at higher temperatures between 60 and 65 degrees, but they will dry out more rapidly and won't remain edible as long.

Do not stack squashes. Instead, place them in a single layers well off the floor.

It pays to wipe and examine stored squashes occasionally to prevent condensation from starting molds, which can eventually become deep rooted.