Squash | The Useful Tool

Roasted pumpkin seeds. Shown in HIC Oven-To-Table Fine Porcelain Ramekin

Next time you’re craving a salty snack to dig into during home movie or game time, try roasting up a batch of pumpkin seeds and discover how delicious and satisfying they are. You might find yourself saying, “Hold the popcorn and pass the pumpkin seeds!”

How to roast pumpkin seeds

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Cut pumpkin, according to how you’ll be using it. Scrape the soft pumpkin innards and the seeds into a bowl. Pull the seeds from the pumpkin meat with your fingers (This is a great task for kids to help with!) and then place the mostly clean seeds in a colander and clean off the remaining squash meat under cool water. If a little squash meat remains, they’ll still turn out just fine.

Pat seeds dry (paper towels work) then lay them on a baking sheet lined with a baking mat if you have one, or foil.

Raw, cleaned pumpkin seeds sprinkled with salt and chili powder on Silpat baking mat

Raw, cleaned pumpkin seeds sprinkled with salt and chili powder on a baking mat

Drizzle seeds with olive oil or melted butter, and sprinkle with salt and spices. Toss the seeds with the oil and salt on the baking sheet, until evenly coated. Place in oven for about 25 minutes, or until seeds start to brown. Remove from oven, let cool, and enjoy. Want to try something different? We found a great Chili Lime Roasted Pumpkin Seed recipe from the Austin Gastronimist.

Roasted pumpkin seeds

Ingredients:

A pumpkin
2 tbsp. melted butter or oil (we used olive oil)
Salt (chili, smoked, or truffle salt is delicious)
Optional – garlic powder, cayenne pepper, or cinnamon and sugar. Have fun. Get creative.

Tools:

Colander
Spoon for scraping the inside of the pumpkin
Baking sheet
Foil
Roasted pumpkin seeds

Contributed by Nicole H., of HIC

Baked Squash with Anjou Pears

Baked squash with fresh picked Anjou pears – a perfect combination to welcome autumn’s arrival.

Winter squash is at it’s peak in markets around the country in late summer and early fall; this is the perfect time of year to incorporate this nutrient rich, delicious vegetable into your menu. It can be incredibly versatile – perfect in sweet pies, savory side dishes, as a hearty salad topping, even used as a bowl for fall soups. We feature the winter squash varietal known as carnival squash in this post, beautifully colored in shades of gold, orange, and green, eye catching with it’s stripes and spots. The meat inside is yellow and sweet, tasting a bit buttery and nutty when cooked. When picking out a winter squash, look for one free of moldy spots, and a hard, not tender skin.

Autumn’s Bounty – Carnival Squash and Anjou Pear

While perusing a local farmer’s market, we picked up fresh Anjou pears too – sweet, with a firmer texture than a Bartlett, which makes them a superior choice for cooking.

Baked Squash with Anjou Pear Recipe

Ingredients

1 carnival squash
3 Tbls butter
3 Tbls brown sugar
1 Anjou pear

Tools

Silpat baking mat (optional, but ideal for easily transferring baked squash wreaths to serving dishes)
Baking pan
Small pitcher to drizzle melted butter
Knife
Hard edged scraper or spatuala to remove squash seeds and distribute brown sugar

Step-by-Step Instructions

Carnival Squash

Remove top and bottom ½ inch from carnival squash. Slice remaining squash horizontally, into 3/4 inch thick slices. Remove seeds with a hard edge scraper. Place on baking sheet; using a Silpat mat is ideal to enable the squash wreaths to lift easily after baking, but you can make this dish without as Silpat too.