As a part of a collaboration with Hidden Valley Garden, I've developed these recipes to highlight some of Alberta's homegrown veggies. When you are faced with trying to figure out what to do with an unfamiliar ingredient, a little nudge in the right direction is always helpful. The recipes I have been developing have all been aimed at showcasing the versatility of the produce.
If you are anything like me, you are currently panicking about what to do with your mountain of squash. We have loads of zucchini and pattypan squash we grew in our garden this summer, so any inspiration on what to do with them at this point is welcomed. They say if you teach a girl to garden, the entire neighbourhood gets squash, and they weren't wrong. Planting one squash seed can be so deceptive and the bounty overwhelming!
Botanically speaking, squash are actually fruit! They are categorized as such because they contain the seeds of the plant. Squash is incredibly versatile, lending itself to be roasted, simply grilled, sautéed, used in soup, and so on. The blossoms of the squash plants are sometimes used too. They can filled (like with herbed goat cheese), lightly battered, and deep-fried until crispy. The craze of making "zoodles" became very trendy, where you use a special tool to create spirals of zucchini to use as a pasta substitute. This is a very popular trick for people practicing the keto diet. "Zoodles" can be eaten raw, microwaved in bursts of 30 seconds to gently soften them, sautéed, or cooked in boiling water (be sure to drain and pat dry). Summer squashes have a thinner skin, whereas winter squash have thicker skins and are better suited for longer term storage (hence the term "winter squash"). The thick winter squash skins are not edible as they are too tough.
Check out some of the following recipe suggestions as some inspiration for how to use up all of that squash...
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