Plain Jane baked acorn squash

[Guest guest]

I like cutting a nice smallish to medium sized acorn squash in half, long ways.

Scoop out the seeds and stringy stuff. Brush the interior of the squash

generously with melted butter or margarine and lightly sprinkle with brown sugar

or a squirt of honey. Bake at 350*F on a toasting pan or cookie sheet with

sides, until a fork inserted in the center of the flesh enters easily and the

squash nicely squashy. Sometimes I'll put an inch of water in the pan, sometimes

I don't. Squash with a deeply orange flesh are generally sweeter. Stringy squash

can be scooped out of the shell and mashed. (Also yummy.) The granular brown

sugar sprinkles more easily than the usual brown sugar. Mother used to slice the

squash in circles, pulling out the seeds and stringy bits, lightly salted and

buttered and then roasted. I loved it but since Father didn't, she didn't make

it as often as I'd have liked. Thankfully I married a fellow squash person.

 

I strongly recommend considering planting some acorn squash in next year's

garden. They are a little less productive than yellow crookneck or zucchini but

24 plants will do for the two of us. We rarely have enough to last the year out,

so if I'm able to garden next year, I'll put a lot more out. They last well in

your root cellar (if they don't get eaten first).

 

Since my oven element is dead, I'll be making the squash on top of the stove in

a frying pan with a little water in it (added as needed during cooking). I'll be

using a 2 quart stainless steel bowl to cover the squash.

 

Jeanne in GA