If you ask me butternut squash is one of the good things about the winter months. You can store them in your pantry to cook when you need them whether you grow them yourself or get them at the grocery store. I didn’t get mine at the grocery store, but I didn’t grow them either. Farmer Tim down the road grows butternut squash like you wouldn’t believe.
The easiest (and best in my opinion) way to cook them is to roast them in the oven. You can cut them in half and leave them in large pieces or you can dice them up into bite size pieces which is what I like to do.
Its sort of a pain to cut the squash because they are dense like pumpkins, but the smaller pieces mean more of the slightly crunchy sweet brown places and that’s what I like.
We eat roasted butternut squash as a side dish or sprinkled on salads. Heck its even good cold.
To roast the squash heat your oven to about 425. Toss diced squash with a little olive oil (or brush olive on if leaving whole); sprinkle with salt; cook for about 40 minutes or until done. I leave mine until the edges began to brown slightly.
Tipper
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Hey there, Tipper – I couldn’t stop thinking about how good this sounds, so I went ahead and tried it with one of my Candy Roasters. Blogged about it tonight – thanks! 🙂
Recommend butternut squash soup… Most delish on a cold winter evening…
I haven’t grown any other winter squash since you introduced me to Candy Roasters, Tipper! And I’ve always roasted them whole or halved, in their skins. Can you also do Candy Roasters in this chunky way, or do they just melt into blobs?
Tipper,
I never had a butternut squash before, but Toots, one of daddy’s two sisters, sent me one while she was still alive. Her husband, Tommy Higdon, brought half of one to the shop and the other half she sent it to my brother, Joel. He came by and said he had the best Cushaw Pie. All the time I was eating I thought I had a Butternut Squash. …Ken
I’ve never tried butternut squash but if it tastes like its cousin the punkin I’ll pass. But then again the roasting aspect might mean it tastes like a baked sweet tater. I like white sweet taters but not the yeller ones.
I might just find one and give it a try. I don’t like olive oil neither but I’m sure any neutral oil would do. I think I’ll add it to my grocery list and look for one the next time I venture out.
i have on in there now, that i got in my last misfits market delivery. been trying to decide how to use it. how long will it keep, do you know?
Elithea – the ones I cooked were from last summer. I guess it depends on the condition but they should keep several weeks if not months.
I love to grow these Winter squash, but they take considerable garden space. I tried to arrange my garden one year so they would have room to spread by planting early crops like lettuce, radishes, greens, and even some early snap beans in alternating rows. With diligence this was successful except for having to watch my step closely to avoid their vines trailing through the garden. I had my counter covered with a delightful array of Winter squash, and they kept for such a long time. Some of them mixed so I tried to research the ones to avoid planting same year. They are nutritious and flavorful, and I spent the Winter sneaking them into soups and casseroles. Thanks for giving us a post on simple recipe for an often overlooked tasty squash.
As I read your instructions for roasting butternut squash, I kept waiting to see if you used brown or white sugar. I have never had butternut squash, but often thought about buying one to try. It’s a good thing I read this or I would have fixed it like I do cushaw.
I like to eat butternut squash the same way I do sweet potatoes, drizzled with honey and add real butter. I don’t eat either real often because the way I like it is very fattening.
Tipper, The Blind Pig is part of my daily routine. It grounds me for the day. I’m not sure how I’ll get along without you for two days!
I haven’t cooked butternut squash much because It’s so hard to cut up. I like it but I dread the work! I saw Tim’s squash the were big and healthy. I’ll try them this next season!
Do not recall ever having butternut squash, though I must have sometime. My Grandma raised fall squash but the only one I remember was cushaw. I liked cooked squash (never had roasted) as a boy but that dish ended when Grandma stopped cooking it. I don’t have room to grow squash here.