Squash

The end of our CSA subscription is marked each year by a large box of squash. I have done a pretty good job using it up or prepping it for future use.  We've roasted whole spaghetti squash in the oven and eaten it with a little butter, a drizzle of honey and salt and pepper.  I roasted pumpkins and made these muffins:

http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/orange_date_pumpkin_muffins.html

which are incredible and probably the most delicious muffins I have ever tasted.  The only change I made was to incorporate the walnuts into the batter rather than sprinkling them on top and I replaced the honey with maple syrup.  Mine were finished after 15 to 16 minutes in the oven. 

I peeled and chopped up a giant butternut squash and made a huge batch of these enchiladas:

http://www.vegetariantimes.com/recipe/roasted-enchiladas-with-tomatillo-sauce/.  I had leftover red peppers in my fridge and a bag of tomatillos from my neighbor's garden.  I also cooked up a large pot of pinto beans and mixed them into the squash filling. 

I roasted a butternut and 4 acorn squashes to use in soup recipes from William Sonoma Soup of the Day (which you must purchase if you haven't already) but I got the squashes mixed up and used them in the wrong soups.  One soup was sweet and one was savory and to my surprise (because I do love sugar) I ended up liking the savory soup more.  The sweet one was delicious, but the savory one was better.  So here's the recipe:

Acorn Squash Soup with Toasted Walnut Butter

4 acorn squashes, about 1 lb each
1 T unsalted butter
2 slices bacon, finely chopped (I used 3, because you can't have too much bacon)
1 large yellow onion chopped
6 c chicken broth (ended up having too much, would reduce to 4 next time and add more as needed)

1/4 c heavy cream
Large pinch of grated nutmeg
1/4 c fresh orange juice

Walnut Butter
1/4 c walnuts
2 tsp walnut oil (used coconut oil instead, canola would be fine too)
Large pinch of sugar
salt and pepper
2 T unsalted butter at room temperature

***I roasted all of my squash one night and then kept it in the fridge until ready to use which cut down on my prep time at dinner.

Preheat oven to 375 and lightly oil baking sheet.  Cut each squash in half and place cut side down on the baking sheet.  Bake until easily pierced with a knife, about 45 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside until cool enough to handle.  Scoop out seeds and discard, scoop out flesh and set aside until ready to use.

Toss walnuts with oil, sugar, salt and pepper to taste and spread out on baking sheet.  Toast until golden, about 5 to 7 minutes, and then remove from oven and when cool chop finely by hand or in a blender or food processor.  In a small bowl mash the walnuts with the butter (I just did this with my fingers) and spoon into plastic wrap and shape into a log, place in the fridge until dinnertime.  (I just stuck mine in a small bowl.)

In a large heavy pot melt the butter over medium heat, add the onion and bacon and saute until onion is soft, about 10 minutes.  Raise the heat to high and add the squash and broth and bring to a gentle boil.  Reduce heat to medium and simmer, uncovered, until the squash is very soft, about 30 minutes. 

Remove the soup from the heat and puree in a blender in smooth, working in batches. Return to pot over medium low heat and stir in the cream, nutmeg, orange juice and salt and pepper to taste.  Serve warm, garnished with slices of the walnut butter.