Julie Van Rosendaal/The Globe and Mail
It’s tempting, at this time of year, to take home an enormous winter squash from the piles of gnarly, colourful gourds at farmers’ markets and flanking the entrances of grocery stores. Whether or not you know them by name, thick-skinned buttercup, Hubbard, kabocha, turban, kuri and squat French-style pumpkins can all be used in the same ways you might cook a more mainstream butternut or acorn squash.
They can be more intimidating to handle, both in size and shape; once you get it into your kitchen, what do you do with a knobby 10-pound squash? You could go at it with a knife and hack it into more manageable pieces. Or, when the oven is on for a banana bread or lasagna or something else, you could poke a few holes in it (to allow steam to escape, very important in order to avoid cleaning your oven later) and place it directly on the oven rack alongside whatever you’re baking to roast until it softens and starts to slump into itself. Cooked into submission, a winter squash is far easier to handle; once it cools down you can break it apart with your hands or a knife and scoop out the seeds to toast, and the flesh for soups, muffins, pies, curries or this quick spicy red lentil dal.
Roasted squash can hang out in the fridge for several days, and freezes beautifully; having broken down in the oven, its structure won’t change when frozen. And yes, all winter squash seeds can be toasted like pumpkin seeds: Separate them from the pulp, rinse in a colander and dry, toss with oil and salt (or any spice blend you like) and spread out on a baking sheet to roast at about 375 F for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they’re well-toasted and golden. They’re delicious for snacking, and add protein, fibre and crunch scattered over salads, soups and curries.
Spicy (or not) roasted squash and red lentil dal
If you don’t have roasted winter squash, this is also delicious with cubes of frozen butternut squash from the grocery store, which cooks more quickly than fresh squash, having been frozen.
- Canola or other vegetable oil or ghee, for cooking
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 1 jalapeno or other hot chili pepper, seeded and chopped
- Salt, to taste
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- 1 tbsp grated ginger
- 2 tsp curry paste or spice blend (or cumin, turmeric, coriander, black pepper, fennel, mustard seed, curry leaves, in any combination and quantity you like)
- 1/3 cup (ish) chopped cilantro stems, plus a few leaves for on top
- A few spoonfuls of roasted squash
- 1/3 cup dry split red lentils
- 1 1/2 to 2 cups chicken or vegetable stock or water
- A splash of coconut milk or cream, to taste (optional)
- A handful of spinach (optional)
In a large skillet, heat a drizzle of oil and cook the onion and jalapeno, sprinkled with a good pinch of salt, for a few minutes, until softened. Add the garlic and ginger, curry blend, paste or spices and cilantro and cook for another minute or two.
Scoop a few spoonfuls of roasted squash into the saucepan. Add the lentils and about 1 1/2 cups stock or water and bring to a simmer.
Reduce the heat and cook, stirring often, adding more stock and/or coconut milk or even water if it reduces too much, until the lentils are soft and the mixture is saucy, about 20 minutes. Tear in a handful of spinach if you like, and stir until it wilts. Season with salt if it needs it and serve warm.
Serves about two to four.