Acorn Squash

Acorn squash is a winter squash originally from America and has a thin inedible skin and firm flesh. The taste is sweeter and nuttier than many of the summer squashes. Colour varies from green to orange or even white. Squashes are high in fibre, low in calories and full of nutrients, especially vitamins A and C and potassium.

Store your uncut squash in a cool dark place (larder or cupboard) but preferably not the fridge and it should last a couple of weeks without any problem. Once it is cut, wrap any unused portion in cling film and store it in the fridge for up to a week.

Acorn squash can be prepared like any other squash or pumpkin. Cut in half and remove the stalk and scoop out the seeds (which can be dried and roasted as a snack just like pumpkin seeds). Whether you should peel the squash at this stage depends on what you are going to do with it. If you are going to roast slices of the squash (at about 200C), then leave the skin on as this will help the slices stay in one piece during cooking. You could also steam cubes of squash and dress them with olive oil and/or soy sauce, although I wouldn’t boil squash as it will go to pieces in the process.

Why not try a squash risotto?. Fry garlic and onion in olive oil and then add small cubes of squash. Once the cubes have picked up a bit of colour, add the rice (preferably Arborio or another risotto rice) and stir until the grains are coated. Then add chicken or vegetable stock a little at a time, stirring frequently until the rice is just tender and, at the last minute, stir in toasted pine nuts (or pumpkin seeds) and some grated parmesan and season well. Mmmmm, lovely! Quantities will depend on how many you are feeding but I would use about 140g (5oz) of rice to 450ml (1 pint) of stock to feed 2 people. Replace some of the stock with white wine if you feel like splashing out!