Photo by Erin Kelly.

Photo by Erin Kelly.

By DCist contributor Jenny Holm

It’s hard to feel inspired to cook with local ingredients when your weekly farmers’ market turns from a sea of abundance into a pond of squash. Sure, there are several types to choose from—butternut, acorn, spaghetti, kabocha, delicata, and sundry other baby pumpkin look-alikes. But unless you know how to bring out the best of each one and can prepare a variety of different dishes using them, you’ll get burned out on squash long before spring’s first green shoots begin to poke their way out of the ground.

Luckily, winter squashes lend themselves well to many different flavor profiles and types of dishes—from soup to nuts, if you will—so it’s easy to find ways to use them that won’t leave your taste buds starved for variety. Here are some ideas to get you started:

The dense, rich flesh of butternut squash breaks down into a smooth and creamy base for soups. To prepare the squash, peel off its thin skin, chop it in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds, then chop the flesh into cubes. You can either simmer the cubes in stock or roast them in the oven until they’re totally tender. (Roasting imparts a deeper flavor.) Mix the cubes and liquid with sautéed onions, carrots, and garlic, puree until smooth, then add cream or coconut milk, salt, and whatever spices you like. Try Soupergirl’s curried peanut squash soup.

Acorn squash begs to be stuffed. Don’t peel it; just slice it in half and scoop out the seeds to form two single-serving cups. Mix your stuffing separately, fill the cups with it, and bake on a foil-lined sheet until the squash flesh is tender and the stuffing is hot. I love a stuffing of brown rice, dried cherries, chopped walnuts, and cilantro. Try Washington Green Grocer’s recipe for acorn squash stuffed with chorizo, cheese, and quinoa.

Transforming the rather hulking spaghetti squash into tendrils reminiscent of angel hair pasta feels a little magical. As usual, cut the squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Then place the two halves cut side down in a roasting pan with a little water and bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for about 45 minutes, until the flesh falls into tender strands when you scrape it with a fork. Spaghetti squash tastes fairly bland on its own, so it makes a great foil for flavorful sauces and cheeses. You can use spaghetti squash just as its name implies, layer it into a casserole, or use it to replace potatoes in these delicate latkes for Hanukkah, from D.C. food blog Mango & Tomato.

Use super-sweet Japanese red kabocha squash to make a sweet but healthy snack. De-seed and cut the squash (which looks like a squat pumpkin) into half-inch slices, toss them with a bit of warmed coconut oil, then coat them lightly with a mixture of brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and a hint of cayenne. Bake on a lined baking sheet at 400 degrees Fahrenheit until tender. If you’re ready to invest a little more time, try Equinox Chef Todd Gray’s recipe for kabocha squash ice cream with spiced pumpkin seeds.

The skin of a delicata squash is indeed delicate enough to eat along with the flesh after cooking, which makes it a snap to chop and cook quickly. If you’re planning to pan-fry it, cut it into rings or half-moons, which brown better than cubes (and just make more sense for a round vegetable). Or try deep-frying it tempura-style.

Still drowning in squash? Try these recipes from D.C. food writers and chefs:

Filed Under: farmers market, winter squash,