With Nothin' but her Apron on...

Squash Baby Food- with your host, Carla, who has no idea what squash even tastes like:

No, I'm not really cooking naked. Can you guess which song the title comes from?




Start with an acorn squash. They are green and orange and shaped like an acorn the size of your baby's head.


I took the picture because I thought the halves looked like pretty flowers:



You have to scoop out the ickies from the inside. Kinda rough, but mostly like doing the same thing for a pumpkin you are about to carve. Squash must be a pumpkin cousing or something:

Oh, and I had no idea it would look like a face until after I posted the shot.



It said to cut out the stems, I don't think the bottom was considered a stem, but I cut it out anyway. Then you're supposed to put them upside down in a baking pan filled with an inch of water. So these are upside down (sans water) in a pan I have seen people bake stuff in, must be a baking pan right?


Then you cook them at 400 degrees (I think) for 40m-1hr, they are supposed to "pucker" when they are ready, but I have no idea what that would look like. I posted it as a question on facebook and most people assumed it meant turn wrinkly. These turned brown and got really hot so I assumed they were ready:
I have to make the comment: when I pulled these out of the oven, I was offended by the smell. It took me back to a really old building-turned-hostel in Nagoya that we stayed in Sept '09. I was pregnant and the tatami mats were so smelly we had to cancel our future reservations there. This squash smelled like those mats. I wonder, what is tatami made from?


Turn them over and scoop out the squash "meat". I figured I should do it while they were hot and mushy, but it kinda burned my fingers a little, was I supposed to wait for it to cool?



Scooped (Used an ice-cream scoop):

I think if these dried out they'd make decent flower pots, I have no idea how to do that though, but I also have no idea how to cook...



Wondering what I'm doing not playing with her, she comes in to inspect my work:



So then you put this in the blender:


Don't forget a little water and a stick/spoon to poke at it with (not while it's on):


Push the buttons however long it takes to get a puree:


Test some out on your adoring fan(s):


It's good right?


Nope:


Put the rest in ice cube trays, cover with some sort of kitchen wrap and freeze:

I usually leave them in the freezer 24 hrs just to be safe. Then I dump them into a freezer safe storage container. They'll keep 1-3 months. Actually a little longer is ok, but if you go past three months you risk losing nutrients.



If your little foodie falls asleep you'll have time to do something with these:

(But you'll have to clean the gunk off first, which is honestly the nastiest thing I've ever had to do, and I change diapers and wipe snotty noses all day.)


Mix the seeds with a little salt and olive oil (I used some mixed oil that had olive oil in it) and lay out the seeds on aluminum foil on a tray:

(I put cayenne powder on the top part for my husband.)






You are probably wondering, "With such great culinary skills, what did this lady have for lunch?" Try this recipe out- 2 slices of white wheat bread with peanut butter and jelly to taste:






Here you go! After baking in the oven on 275 degrees for 15-20 minutes:


(Don't ask me what the cayenne ones tasted like, you couldn't pay me money to eat them.)





Here are the legit recipes:

Squash Baby Food Recipes -
Butternut or Acorn Squash - Basic Purée
(4)6 months+

1 acorn or butternut squash



1. Cut acorn or butternut squash in half, scoop out seeds
2. Place halves face down in a pan and cover with an inch of water
3. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 40 minutes to 1 hour - be sure the “shell/skin” puckers and halves feel soft then scoop squash “meat” out of the shell
4. Place squash "meat" into your choice of appliance for pureeing and begin pureeing.
5. Add water as necessary to achieve a smooth, thin consistency.



You can also peel the squash, scoop out the seeds and then cut into chunks and boil/steam until tender (like when boiling potatoes for mashed potatoes) then follow steps 4 and 5 - this way is most difficult however and rather time consuming.

http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/squashbabyfoodrecipes.htm

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Ingredients

* 1 cup winter squash seeds
* 1 tablespoon olive oil
* 1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 275 degrees F (135 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil.
2. After removing the seeds from the squash, rinse with water, and remove any strings and bits of squash. Pat dry, and place in a small bowl. Stir the olive oil and salt into the seeds until evenly coated. Spread out in an even layer on the prepared baking sheet.
3. Bake for 15 minutes, or until seeds start to pop. Remove from oven and cool on the baking sheet before serving.

http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/roasted-winter-squash-seeds/Detail.aspx