Squash comes in so many different varieties – from acorn to butternut to spaghetti squash. Native Americans grew the vegetable hundreds of years ago, though they have been traced back 10,000 years to Mexico.
About this article
This article was originally published in the September 2017 issue of 400-The Life, a publication of the Forsyth County News. To read the entire magazine, click here.
Did you know?
U.S. Presidents George Washington and Thomas Jefferson grew the vegetables in their personal gardens.
Pumpkins are actually considered a type of squash, and one of the first published recipes for pumpkin pie (Pompkin Pudding) was in Amelia Simmons’ 1796 cookbook, American Cookery – the first cookbook to be written by an American and published in the United States.
Quick tip
Squash is notoriously difficult to peel, but when baked the skins are much easier to remove; but don't forget to remove the seeds!
Just One Cookbook — recipes that highlight our ingredient of the month
Cheesy Squash and Zucchini Casserole
Ingredients
1 pound yellow squash, sliced
1 pound zucchini, sliced
½ onion, diced
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
½ cup biscuit baking mix
½ cup butter
2 eggs
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
10 saltine crackers, or as needed
¼ cup bread crumbs, crushed
Directions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Fill a large pot with water and bring to a rolling boil. Add yellow squash, zucchini, and onion; bring back to a boil, and cook vegetables until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and transfer vegetables to a large bowl.
Mix cheddar cheese, baking mix, butter, eggs, sugar and salt with the cooked vegetables using a large spoon; stir until butter has melted and baking mix has dissolved. Fold crushed crackers into the mixture until the liquid has been absorbed. Pour mixture into a 1 1/2-quart casserole dish; top with bread crumbs.
Bake in the preheated oven until topping is lightly browned and cheese is melted, 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Combine 1/2 cup of butternut squash puree (or pumpkin puree), 2 tsp of brown sugar, 1 tsp of molasses and a pinch of salt. Strain the mixture through a finemesh sieve into a clean bowl. Use immediately or store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
Directions
Combine the cinnamon and sugar in a shallow bowl. In a separate shallow bowl, add 1 tbsp of rum. Dip the rim of a double-rocks glass into the rum bowl followed by the cinnamon-sugar to coat, and set aside.
Add the butternut squash base, remaining 3 tbsp of rum, orange liqueur, simple syrup, bitters and juice of 2 lemon wedges into a cocktail shaker filled with ice and stir, then shake until well-chilled.
