From pie pumpkins to pepper squash, to butternut, to spaghetti squash, and delicatta and jack-o-lanterns too, it’s time to enjoy the nutrition and great taste of squash! This week we will be enjoying spaghetti squash. Rich in vitamin C, vitamin B6, potassium and calcium, spaghetti squash is named for the noodle-like strands it has when cooked. You can use it in place of noodles with tomato pasta sauce, make a simple lemon butter & garlic sauce like I did or even make these Lemon Basil Fritters.
Lemon Garlic Butter Spaghetti Squash
Ingredients
- 1 medium spaghetti squash
- 2 cups water (for cooking)
- 2 tbsp. butter of choice (we used vegan becel to keep it dairy free)
- 2 tbsp lemon juice or to taste
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- salt & pepper to taste
Directions
- Cut squash lengthwise with a large knife. It may help to remove stem first. Scoop out seeds and roast or discard. Bake face down in the oven in a glass dish with an inch of water in the bottom (about 50 mins at 400 degrees), or cut into a few chunks and cook in instant pot on pressure cook for 15-20mins. Safely remove from oven or pressure release if using instant pot. Using kitchen gloves, scoop out flesh with a pasta scoop and place in a colander. Let drain for a few minutes.
- Place in a mixing bowl along with butter, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper. Serve as a side with meat of choice (we had pork chops) and mixed veggies (we had carrots, green beans and sweet pepper, added to be steamed in that order).
Butternut Squash Soup
Still have that butternut squash from last week? Apparently this recipe has made its mark on my family because my 7 year old stopped me and told me ever-so seriously that we had not had butternut squash soup all year! What a travesty! I explained that it is now squash season, so it’s time to enjoy it now. I don’t have the scientific training to back this, but I believe eating with the seasons provides us with what our bodies need at the time. In the spring, the energy from all the green plants helps us lighten our menus and our bodies, and in fall, the hearty roots and squashes nourish and warm us from the inside out. This recipe for butternut squash soup is super easy, adaptable, and crave-worthy. This can be done on the stovetop or by roasting, but I find it simpler to do this in my instant pot.
Ingredients
- 1 medium-large butternut squash
- 1 carton chicken or vegetable broth (or part water, part broth works too!)
- 3 small potatoes
- 2 cloves garlic
- handful of celery ends and leaves
- 5 sprigs fresh thyme (place in whole sprig)
- optional:1 sauteed onion
- 1/2 tbsp salt
- pepper to taste
- 1 tsp. yellow curry powder
- can full fat coconut milk
Directions:
- Cut butternut squash lengthwise and and scoop out seeds. Cut into large chunks to fit in instant pot. Peel potatoes, and peel and crush garlic cloves and add to instant pot. Add all other ingredients and set instant pot to pressure cook 20 mins in the sealed position. Do a natural pressure release unless you are pressed for time. Remove thyme stems.
- Carefully add soup to a large blender in 2 batches and very carefully puree. Add coconut milk as needed for desired thickness.
- Mix together and garnish with coconut milk and celery leaves. Serve with naan or toast.
Farm Shares This Week:
Sorry, no pretty pictures this week- I was home working on my roof.
Half Share
- carrots
- spaghetti squash
- savoy cabbage
- red bell or sweet chili/banana peppers
- bunch spinach
- russet potatoes
- red beets (recipe idea: grate beets and cook with rice to make pretty pink rice)
- black kale
- romaine
- radish
Whole
- carrots
- spaghetti squash
- savoy cabbage
- red bell peppers
- bunch spinach
- russet potatoes
- red beets (recipe idea: grate beets and cook with rice to make pretty pink rice)
- black kale
- romaine
- radish
- cilantro
- banana or sweet chili peppers
- strawberries, cucumber or broccoli
- celery
- ground cherries
- fennel
- pie pumpkin
Simply 6
- carrots
- spaghetti squash
- savoy cabbage
- russet potatoes
- cucumbers
- black kale
Fruit Shares
- 2.5lbs Ontario organic honeycrisp apples
- 4 BC organic nectarines
- organic green grapes
- 2.5lbs organic bananas
- 3 organic avocadoes