I'm Baaack...

Wow, I can't believe it's been so long since I posted. It's been a busy summer, and admittedly, one involving a lot of quick and easy veggie burgers and oven fries. (Mmm, french fries - try loading them up with sea salt and garlic powder and dipping them in honey.)

Anyway, a couple days ago I picked two acorn squash from our garden, and proceeded to prepare the four halves two different ways for last night's dinner. It was fun, tasty, and easy.

Sweet Acorn Squash

1 small acorn squash per person, halved; or half a large squash
~ 2 T butter
Brown sugar to taste, 1/4 to 1/3 cup
Honey (optional)

Preheat the oven to 375. Cut the squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Prick the flesh a few times with a fork. Butter the inside of the squash all over, then sprinkle a generous, even coating of brown sugar. If you have honey, drizzle some on top of the brown sugar. (We didn't have honey, but it was still quite tasty.)

Place the squash halves face down on a baking tray lined with aluminum foil. Bake until the flesh is tender, ~ 30 minutes.

Serve immediately with a nicely contrasting side of greens or veggies - I used steamed baby red potatoes seasoned with dill, sage, and rosemary. I like to put the herbs on the potatoes while they're steaming, and just toss with a little butter before serving.

Serves 2

Ginger-Mushroom Stuffed Acorn Squash

1 small acorn squash per person, halved; or half a large squash
~ 3 1/2 T butter
1 T fresh chopped ginger
4 - 6 crimini mushrooms, wiped clean and sliced
1 - 2 slices of bread, shredded into crumbs
salt and pepper to taste

Scoop out the seeds from the squash, prick the insides with a fork, spread a layer of butter on them (roughly 1 T per half or less), and place the squash face down on a baking tray lined with aluminim foil. Bake until the flesh is tender, ~ 30 minutes.

When your timer's down to about 5 minutes, put 1 T of butter in a small saucepan over medium to medium-low heat. Saute the ginger for just a couple minutes. Put the breadcrumbs in your toaster oven (or on another tray in your oven, should you be toaster-oven-deprived) and set them to toast them medium well. Add the sliced mushrooms to the saucepan, lower the heat slightly and cook for 3-5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

In the meantime, around about when you've added the mushrooms and given them a stir, your squash should be ready. Retrieve the squash from the oven, scoop out the flesh (preserving the shell), season with salt and pepper to taste, and mash it up quickly with 1/2 T butter or less. Now your mushrooms should be ready; add the contents of the saucepan to your mashed squash, stir it all up, and by the time you've refilled the squash shells with your mixture, your breadcrumbs should be ready to sprinkle on top. Serve immediately.

Serves 2