Spaghetti squash is a low-carb alternative to pasta, while butternut varieties offer high fiber and essential vitamins. Master cooking techniques for acorn, kabocha, and delicata squash to create nutritious holiday side dishes.
The acorn squash is a variety of the squash species Cucurbita pepo, which also includes pumpkins and zucchini. It’s a winter squash, meaning that you typically eat it in the winter when the fruit is fully mature. The acorn squash generally has an acorn-like shape and is typically dark green.
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Squash, like other fruits and vegetables, contains bacteria and enzymes that will break it down with time, destroying its flavor, color and texture and reducing its nutritional content. While you do not have to cook squash before freezing it, you should blanch it to stop the activity of these enzymes and bacteria.
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Soup for dinner helps keep your calorie count down and your satisfaction level up. Whether you buy butternut squash soup or make your own, balance the creamy sweetness of the squash with flavors on the acidic side or with crunchy textures to contrast with the silkiness of the soup.
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Boil butternut squash to make it tender for eating on its own or using in other dishes. This quick way of cooking butternut squash produces soft chunks in about 10 minutes. The general belief is that adding salt to boiling water makes the water boil at a higher temperature, reducing cooking time.
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Cucumbers and squash are delicious fresh foods, loaded with vitamins and nutrients. Despite being mostly made up of water, cucumbers are high in vitamin A, C and folic acid. Although cucumbers are often eaten raw, they can be baked in the oven, boiled or sautéed on the stovetop.
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Butternut squash is a hard-skinned winter squash with dense, sweet, orange-colored flesh. Its outer shell is thin and easy to peel. Butternut squash is especially rich in vitamin A, and also a good source of vitamins C and E.
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The familiar green winter squash with orange flesh called acorn squash gets its name from its deep green ridges, as well as its wide top that gradually tapers to a narrow bottom. Combining the squash with butter and syrup highlights its sweet taste.
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Sunburst squash are a heritage variety of summer squash related to the pattypan squash. The sunburst varietal is short and round, with slightly scalloped edges and a characteristic orange-yellow color. Use sunburst squash in any recipe that calls for summer squash.
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Zucchini and squash are summer vegetables that are great for stir fry, stew and salad. Squash and zucchini have delicate flavors that are somewhat bland. Even so, they have an inherent sweetness that you can bring out by using a variety of dried and fresh herbs as seasonings.
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Butternut squash is a pear-shaped winter squash related to pumpkins, cucumbers and melons. This squash has a hard, yellow-tan skin and yellow orange to dark orange flesh. Boiled butternut squash has a subtle nutty and sweet flavor, and offers you a wealth of vitamins, minerals, riboflavin and iron, notes "Bon Appetit"
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The unusual shape and bright color of yellow crookneck squash make it a standout among summertime vegetables. Like its summer squash counterparts, zucchini and straightneck yellow squash, yellow crookneck is a low-calorie star, with about 20 calories per cup.
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Whether you go for straightneck or crookneck, yellow summer squash is sweet and tender. The two varieties are similar and used interchangeably in recipes; yellow straightneck is smooth, long and cylindrical, while yellow crookneck has a bulbous bottom and a thin, bent neck.
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For a hearty and healthy meal, accentuate the mild flavor of yellow squash by baking it with your choice of tasty toppings such as low-fat cheese, crispy breadcrumbs and savory seasonings.
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Zucchini is a variety of summer squash commonly used in Italian cooking. Some recipes actually refer to it as "Italian squash." However, other varieties of summer squash are sometimes called Italian squash as well.
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A baked yams dish is a familiar item on menus for special occasions, especially holiday meals. Some cooks add toppings or spices, such as cinnamon or nutmeg, or sugar to achieve a candied yam dish. Some prefer a firm yam, while others cook the yams until they have the consistency of mashed potatoes.
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Yellow squash is a form of summer squash and includes several crookneck and straightneck varieties. These vegetables grow in many areas of the United States and, when in season, you can usually find yellow squash at local farmers markets, roadside fruit and vegetable stands and grocery stores.
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Delicata squash, also sometimes known as sweet potato squash or Bohemian squash, features yellow skin with green stripes on an oblong shape.
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Butternut squash is a type of winter squash, with yellowish-tan skin and firm orange flesh. Low in fats and proteins and high in carbohydrates, the vegetable has a mild, slightly nutty flavor and is typically prepared by boiling or steaming.
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Butternut squash has a moderate glycemic index ranking and a low glycemic load. It’s also low in calories, a good source of fiber and an excellent source of vitamins C and A, making it a healthful choice whether or not you need to watch your blood sugar.
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