Bam! Pow! Squash! Puree!

My squash cutting skills
need a bit of brushing up...

There’s a blizzard on the way, which means impending doom (not really, but the South is never really prepared for snow). I hit the grocery store early this morning to get the essentials (alcohol) and the final ingredients I needed for stuffed squash and red pepper puree. It’s a good wintery, comfort food, hearty meal that’s perfect to eat while watching the snow come down.

            I picked acorn squash for no particular reason, but it is significantly smaller than butternut, which ups the likelihood that I’d be able to finish it all myself. The stuffing is mostly sautéed vegetables; breadcrumbs give it the substantiality that rice or quinoa normally would. I also melted cheddar cheese into the stuffing, which really held the whole thing together. Weirdly, it included both chopped walnuts and sunflower seeds—I guess to pack the protein? You’re also meant to throw in a couple dried apricots. Surprisingly, the apricots were pretty good with the stuffing, but I was definitely apprehensive at first.

I had some leftover stuffing, since my squash was particularly small, so I snacked on that while it cooked. It was absolute perfection. The squash from the final product only improved upon the whole thing. I’m not actually a big fan of the stringy texture that winter squash tends to have. I love the flavor, but the texture can be kinda off putting. I would rather scrape out the insides of the squash and mix it up with the stuffing. That way I get the taste of the squash, but the stringiness is disguised within the stuffing.

             I topped the squash with Moosewood’s red pepper puree, which is remarkably simple and very flavorful. You’re supposed to steam the pepper chunks and then blend them up. I think I may have added too much water to the pot when steaming, because the peppers turned very orange and the final sauce didn’t really have much of a peppery “kick” to it. It was still good, and complemented the squash very well. But I need some “steaming practice”, for sure.