Roasting whole butternut squashes

General Cooking tips

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Primrose
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Was speaking to somebody today who said these are delicious roasted whole in the oven, simply needing the skin pricked with a skewer in a few places beforehand to let any steam out . Apparently you then just cut them open, remove the seeds and serve with a little butter (and black pepper?) , as you would eat a sweet corn cob.

I've never tried this whole roasting method and wonder if anybody has and can give some tips on length of cooking (i.e. Weight per pound as per a meat joint) and oven temperature. Regularly roast them in chunks though.
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snooky
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Primrose,
My wife expressed interest in doing this and I found these instructions on the internet:-

Baked Whole Butternut Squash Recipe:



Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 60 minutes

Yield: 2 to 4 servings

Ingredients:

1 (2 to 3 pounds) butternut squash
1 to 2 tablespoons lime juice
Salt and coarsely-ground pepper to taste



Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Wash outside of the butternut squash.

Place whole squash onto an ungreased baking sheet, and prick in a few places with a sharp knife.

Bake, uncovered, approximately 60 to 90 minutes or until tender and easily pierced with a fork. Remove from oven.

Cut squash in half lengthwise and remove fibers and seeds. Season each half with lime juice, salt, and pepper. Cut each half in half again and serve.

Variation: In a small frying pan over low heat, melt 2 tablespoons butter; stir in 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon. Add 1 tablespoon brown sugar; stir until well blended. Brush the butter mixture over each portion of squash before servings.

Makes 2 to 4 Servings.

P.S. Not tried it yet.
Regards snooky

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Westi
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I kind of do this with the little ones, but wrap them in foil first to steam it a bit then take the foil off to finish so it is not too soggy. This just reduces the overall cooking time. Sometimes I then put the cut & seeded halves back in the hot oven to caramelise the edges & make them a bit crisp, then way too much butter & black pepper added.

Without the butter & pepper this makes a drier flesh for scones & pies as well.
Westi
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Primrose
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I think the great British public haven't realised the potential of this vegetable yet compared with the US and Canada who seem to have had them in their mainstream diets for a lot longer than we have. In terms of storage potential it certainly seems to be up with potatoes, or even better, in terms of being a long term keeper".
Westi
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Totally agree Primrose, but do find some of their recipes weird, especially adding loads of sugar or maple syrup, then serving it as a side to a savoury meal. (Although that may just be the sites I find). Pumpkin pie is also too sweet for my taste but I'm sure one of our trendy chefs will focus on it at some point and come up with something more to the UK taste.

And yes storability is amazing. Maybe time to ask everyone what is their favourite recipe so we can build up our own mini cook book? I have a favourite soup that is a wee bit spicy, mellowed with some coconut cream which I found on an Aussie food site! Aussies also rate pumpkin, especially the QLD Blue but also keen on the Kent pumpkin which is smaller but don't know much about that, but being smaller may be more suitable for our growing. I had some seeds paid for to come over from my mate (as well as lots of other varieties of veg), but they don't let seeds out anymore, she was sternly threatened by the postmistress & she had my seeds (not loose but foil wrapped proper packs from the proper companies) confiscated.

Obviously want to keep them for themselves as far as I can see the risk in that would be to us, not them! Cost me considerably with the exchange rate as well!
Westi
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