Tag Archives: butternut squash

Warm Stew for a Cool Night

Part two of monsoon season started on Tuesday night. I was so happy that I had put a stew in the crock pot! I was looking for something to make with the butternut squash, and thought the spices in this recipe from eat, live, run sounded really good. The seasonings are very similar to those in a chili recipe I make a lot.

Butternut Squash Stew

I put cloves in, to make it taste more like the chili. I couldn’t taste the cloves, so I might use more next time.

Butternut Squash Stew
Recipe type: Main
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
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Serves: 6
 
Ingredients
  • ½ cup flour
  • 1½ pound beef stew meat
  • 1 tablespoon canola oil
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 large butternut squash, peeled, seeds removed, and chopped
  • ½ pound baby portobello mushrooms, quartered
  • 4 small, thin skinned potatoes, diced
  • 3 large carrots, cut in bite sized pieces
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • ¼ teaspoon pepper
  • 3 whole cloves
  • 2 dashes of cayenne pepper
  • ¼ teaspoon paprika
  • 1 quart beef broth
Instructions
  1. Place flour and beef in a medium bowl, toss to coat the meat with flour.
  2. Heat oil in large skillet. Add onion and saute 5 minutes. Add the beef and garlic, continue to saute until the beef has browned.
  3. Place beef mixture in bottom of the crock pot. Add bay leaf, squash, mushrooms, potatoes, and carrots. Sprinkle with Worcestershire sauce, cloves, pepper, cayenne pepper, and paprika. Pour broth over all.
  4. Cook in crock pot at low for 9 hours, until cooked through.

 

Squash Stew

A couple of years ago, I participated in a program called the Full Plate Diet. Now called Full Plate Living, they emphasize eating a lot of fiber to maintain a healthy weight. They recently posted a couple of butternut squash soup recipes, and I decided to try their Lentil Chili this week. I used more squash than the recipe called for, so mine ended up to be more of a stew, but the flavor was amazing. (Great leftovers the next day, too.)Butternut Squash Chile

I’m calling this chile with an “e,” because instead of the spices she chose, I (of course) added green chile.

Butternut Squash Chile Stew
Recipe type: Main
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
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Serves: 4
 
Ingredients
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 4 cups beef broth
  • ¾ cup dried lentils
  • ½ cup chopped green chile
  • 4 cups butternut squash, peeled and chopped
  • 14 ounces canned diced tomatoes
Instructions
  1. In soup kettle, saute garlic in oil for about 1 minute. Add beef broth, lentils, and chile. Bring to a boil and simmer 20 minutes.
  2. Add squash and tomatoes. Return to a simmer, and continue cooking for approximately 1 hour, until lentils and squash are tender.

I served this with a vegetable bread; recipe for that will be coming soon!

Spicy Squash Soup

Cream of  Butternut Squash and Chile SoupI was so excited when the folks over at Full Plate Living shared these soup recipes using butternut squash! While I can’t wait to try the chili, my choice for this recipe was the pureed Butternut Squash Soup. I decided to go spicy, though, and put in some of the green chile we got this week, too. This was a great soup to go with grilled meat and cheese sandwiches for a light weeknight meal. I even got a couple of quick “to dos” done while I was waiting for the squash to cook.

Prep time: 
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Ingredients
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • ½ cup chopped onion
  • 4 cups chicken broth
  • 1 butternut squash, peeled and diced
  • ½ cup chopped green chile
  • 12 ounce can evaporated milk
Instructions
  1. Heat oil in soup kettle over medium heat. Saute onion for 5 minutes.
  2. Add broth, squash, and green chile. Simmer for 20 minutes, until squash is soft.
  3. Use a blender or immersion blender to puree the soup until smooth.
  4. Add evaporated milk. Heat to rewarm.

How much time are you willing to spend in the kitchen on a work night?

Happy eating!

Butternut Squash Pasta

butternut squash pastaOne of the reasons we started getting the weekly harvest boxes was to force us to try different vegetables. While butternut squash is not an unusual vegetable, it is not something I would normally buy in the grocery store. We were served acorn squash as kids, but notice I didn’t say I ate it. I am learning to like squash as an adult, especially when it is cooked well.

I found this recipe for Roasted Butternut Squash and Bacon Pasta on myrecipes.com. I love roasted vegetables and pasta, so combining the two sounded like a winner to me. This is a bit of a labor intensive dinner-I would not normally tackle this one on a work night. It is really good, though.

Butternut Squash Pasta
Recipe type: Main
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 4
 
Ingredients
  • 1 butternut squash, peeled and cut in 1 inch cubes
  • 2 sprigs fresh rosemary, chopped
  • fresh ground pepper
  • ½ pound ground turkey
  • ¼ teaspoon paprika
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 shallots, thinly sliced
  • 6 ounces uncooked whole wheat penne pasta
  • ¼ cup flour
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups fat free half and half
  • 3 ounces provolone cheese, shredded
  • ⅓ cup grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
  1. Place squash on a baking sheet. Sprinkle chopped rosemary and pepper over squash. Bake at 425 degrees for 45 minutes, until squash is tender and lightly browned. Raise oven temperature to 450 degrees.
  2. While squash roasts, season ground turkey with paprika and brown in skillet over medium high heat. Remove turkey from pan, add olive oil. Brown shallots in olive oil until softened and slightly browned. Place in bowl with turkey. Add roasted squash and toss to combine.
  3. Also, while squash roasts, cook pasta according to package directions. Drain well.
  4. While pasta is cooking, combine flour and salt in a Dutch oven. Place over medium heat and slowly whisk in half and half. When it comes to a boil, cook for about 1 minute. Remove from heat and add provolone. Stir until cheese melts. Add drained pasta and toss to combine.
  5. Spray an 11 X 7 inch pan with non stick cooking spray. Spread pasta mixture in bottom of pan. Top with squash mixture. Sprinkle Parmesan over all. Bake at 450 degrees for 10 minutes.

What vegetables did you avoid as a kid that you like now?

Happy eating!

Ruth