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Winter squash comes in shapes round and elongated, scalloped and pear-shaped with flesh that ranges from golden-yellow to brilliant orange. Winter squashes have hard, thick skins and only the flesh is eaten. They take longer to mature than summer squash and are best harvested once the cool weather of fall sets in. They can be stored for months in a cool basement-hence the name “winter” squash.
Butternut Squash
Butternut squash is a big gourd-like squash with a tough skin. It has a sweet, nutty taste, like a pumpkin and can be roasted, stuffed, made into a soup, or used for making breads or muffins. It is a good source of fiber, Vitamin C, A, E, magnesium and potassium.
Carnival squash
Carnival squash is a sweet winter squash, great for baking or stuffing. It is really just a big sweet dumpling type and is similar to delicata in flavor.
Delicata Squash
Delicatas are easy to cook and sweet. The skins can be eaten.
Long Island Cheese Pumpkin
Long Island Cheese Pumpkins, named because they resemble a wheel of cheddar, are one of the oldest squashes to be domesticated. They have a dense, burnt orange-colored flesh, with a flavor similar to butternut.
Marina Di Chioggia Winter Squash
Marina Di Chioggia is a beautiful heirloom winter squash from Italy with a dry orange flesh. It’s great for soups or pasta or roasting.
All winter squashes can be roasted or used for soups (Look for recipes for pumpkin soup or winter squash soup).
How to Cut Your Squash: We realize that hard squashes can be intimidating. But don’t let that stop you from eating yours! Here is Chef Andrew’s take on how to cut up a squash:
To split the squash, you want to be careful if it is a hard squash. Use a thick sturdy knife or a Chinese cleaver. I feel that scoring the shell of the squash can make things easier, and to do this I use a carpenters knife-one of the ones where the blade slides out of the handle for various lengths. Pop it out just a little and then score the shell all the way around, going a little deeper each time. Then, line the edge of the knife or cleaver up with the score and tap the knife into the score by hitting it up near the handle of the knife. Work it so the tip connects to the cutting board and then lever the knife down to complete the cut. If your knife is short or you are intimidated, score the squash and insert a couple screwdrivers into the score, then slowly lever each screwdriver in the opposite direction at the same time.
Also, Joni Sare has a photoessay showing a step by step of cutting up winter squash on her website if pictures might be helpful to you.
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