Help! I Want to Roast a Squash!



Butternut squash, uncut!

Fall is near, and I thought I would take a moment to address one of the season's most difficult yet easiest cooking skills! Aren't those the most frustrating things -- the easiest yet hardest? Drinking lots of water when you're trying to lose weight, going to sleep an hour eaerlier when you want to do better at work, etc.? Those things always trip me up. It's like the harder the obstacle, the easier it is to focus, and the easier the requirements, the more I underestimate them and therefore the harder of a time I have achieving them. Crazy how that works. Anyways, back to the topic at hand.

One of the best ways to eat this fall includes taking advantage of SQUASH. You know, those weird looking gourds of things in baskets at the supermarket for ridiculously cheap prices (y'all know I'm all about the cheap eats.) Once I learned to cook and eat them -- I loved them and have never looked back (and neither has my wallet.) Never again will I pay $4.99 for 2 cups of pre-cubed butternut squash -- when a whole squash makes about 5 cups and costs about $2! Proposterous. I guess they think we're stupid -- or don't have access to a blog post such as this. Since when does using a knife bring about more costs? I'll wait.

Anyways, the possibilities for squash are endless. I thought I would take a break from #THApplefest to answer this question I received via twitter (check us out -- @tablehaven!) -- How can I break down a squash and cook it? Well, here we go.

1. At the grocery store, pick a squash (any squash, even though I used a butternut squash for this post) that is firm to the touch.
2. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.
3. Lie the squash on its side on a hard surface, such as a clean kitchen counter or a cutting board if you have one.
4. With a large knife, cut the squash in half, from top to bottom.
5. Use a spoon to scoop out the seeds.
6. Now that you have two large (and seedless) halves, keep cutting each piece in half until you have chunks similar to the picture above.
7. Spray a pan with cooking spray and place the chunks on the pan. Then spray each chunk with cooking spray (If you have olive oil, feel free to drizzle some on the chunks.)
8. Sprinkle some salt and pepper on the chunks (optional: cinnamon! yum!!) and bake for 30-40 minutes.
9. Enjoy!!!

When you bake a squash, you can eat it as is, or cut it into smaller cubes and add it to a salad or soup for some depth. You could also heat some on the stove with spinach and garlic for a great (hearty!) side dish. It's also very filling for the "price" -- Butternut squash (pictured) has only 82 calories per cup!

I hope this answered your question!
Readers -- if you have any questions (ever,) feel free to shoot me an email at thehaventable@gmail.com or tweet me at @tablehaven!

 

Great Rule of Thumb

Follow the rainbow ~ if a food has a strong color, it's good for you! As you can see from the picture above, butternut squash is a deep orange, and is a great way to get in your vitamins and nutrients!

xoxo n

Bok Choy with Red Pepper & Ginger

Imagine a veggie that is stalky like celery, but white -- and has leaves so green, but doesn't taste like lettuce? Enter into the realm of Bok Choy -- a vegetable used for hundreds of years in China with a slightly sweet, yet light and crisp taste. (best part? low in calories -- holla!) 

A fresh head of bok choy came in my From the Farmer produce delivery this week, and I honestly had couldn't delay using it. This vegetable is actually a favorite of my father's -- but instead of boiling it (i'm not a fan of the texture) -- I sautéed it with some fresh ginger and red peppers for a fresh and colorful twist. Absolutely scrumptious. I packed it up for my lunch all this week -- after making myself stop reaching into the pot.

Servings: 4 (about 1 cup each)

What You'll Need:

• 1 head of fresh bok choy
• 1 small onion (or 2 tbsp onion powder)
• 2 red bell peppers
• 2 tbsp fresh ginger (or ginger powder)
• Cooking Spray
• Salt/Pepper

The Step-by-Step:

1. Chop up the onion and red peppers into small pieces.
2. Heat a large pan on the stove over medium heat and spray with cooking spray.
3. Add peppers and onion, and let cook for 5 minutes. Every minute or so, give it a good stir.
4. While the peppers and onion are cooking, break a stalk off the bok choy head and cut it into slices (starting with the green side and working your way to the white.)
5. Add in the bok choy slices as you go.
6. Keep stirring :)
7. Take your ginger and grate it directly into the pan until you see the equivalent of about 2 big spoonfuls. (If you don't have a grater, cut the ginger into very small pieces then add.)
8. Add a pinch of salt and pepper, and stir.
9. Serve immediately.

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Good on its own, or as a side dish -- and including the chopping and slicing, this bok choy only takes 20 minutes to prepare. Perfect for a fall day when you're rushing to get things done. Not to mention, its chock full of Vitamins A and C, as well as calcium. I think my dad would be proud. Sounds fantastic to me.

xoxo n

I did it! + Other Updates

Hi, everyone.
It's been a while. I apologize.
But.... Quite a few things have happened since I've last posted.

Just a few:
I got promoted.
I made an awesome lasagna that I'm still dreaming about.
I ran a half marathon.

Important Note:
Yes -- I drug my body from Point A to a Point B approximately 13 miles away, finishing the Navy Air Force Half Marathon in DC two days before the fatal shooting at the Navy Yard. Incredibly humbling to run it with wounded warriors and dedicated civilians -- who -- at the time -- had no idea just how much we stood with the Navy. God Bless our Armed Forces both here and abroad.

Readers -- I do not love you any less.
Nor have I been eating any less.
In fact, I've been taking lots of pictures as you can see on my Instagram (so expect an onslew of recipes!) Not only that, but I have NOT fallen prey to the fall temptation at the grocery store yet (I'm sure I could eat a pumpkin-flavored sock if presented to me the right way, perhaps on a plate with an acorn pattern.) Austin has challenged me to eat everything I've been storing in my kitchen (guilty: I'm a "Cabinet Culprit") before going to the supermarket -- and I'm pretty proud of myself for sticking the course. Not only am I saving loads of money -- but its keeping me on my culinary toes and making me experience different combinations of flavors like I'm opening a basket on Food Network's Chopped (tonight for dinner, I made my own soup from fat free chicken broth, a black bean burger, edamame beans, and diced bell pepper.)

Just one last update -- add me on MyFitnessPal at @neilsonnata!

xoxo n