Last of the Winter Squash

Since it was doing nothing but snowing, blowing and temperature dropping today, I decided I'd freeze the last of my butternut squash. I found several going bad and figured it would be the same as apples - one bad apple (or squash) spoils the whole bunch.

I started early and am just finishing up the baking (at 1:00 am). I had three in the oven at a time but since they take three hours, it's been an expensive bunch of squash. If I wanted to punish myself, I'd have measured the amount of gas I used today and compared against store bought.

I don't do that because homegrown tastes so much more flavorful - almost like a different vegetable. And if I was to admit the truth, I just like putting up my own food.

My method of doing this is on the Thanksgiving 2009 post labeled "Butternut Squash".

Since butternut squash can be a bit stringy, this time I whipped it before bagging and freezing. Last time I left it in chunks and I ended up whipping each batch as I went anyway. It's a beautiful orange gold color. It is naturally sweet tasting, dense, and good for you.

According to one source - one cup of butternut squash:

63 calories

150% of your daily need for vitamin A

High in powerful antioxidants

Helps lower cholesterol

32% of daily need for vitamin C

25% of daily need for potassium

6 grams of fiber

Manganese, iron and magnesium

Not all sources agree on the exact amounts, but, they do all agree it offers many nutritional benefits - so much so butternut squash is specifically recommended to help prevent some diseases and alleviate painful symptoms of others. I'll not get more specific because this isn't a medical story, and research facts and issues are available if you are more interested.

We again had the wonderfully rich and beautiful squash dressing for supper tonight. I added Indiana Hickory syrup and it was certainly yummy.

Now, at 1:30 in the morning, I'm ready to call it quits. I'll need energy tomorrow to finish all the rest of the baked squash waiting to be frozen.