Why is butternut squash good for us?
- Beta carotene which our bodies convert into Vitamin A which is important for eye health, cell renewal and supports the immune system
- Vitamin C – important for immune system, wound healing and tissue repair
- B Vitamins – needed for energy and red blood cell formation
- Low in calories and high in fibre – good for weight loss and bowel health
My introduction to butternut squash came in 2011 (I checked back on Facebook as I knew I’d posted a photo as it was a day of many firsts!).
I’d won the raffle for the first time at my Slimming World group (I’ve never been very lucky with raffles) and the prize was the ingredients and recipe for a curried butternut squash soup. I’d never cooked with butternut squash before and didn’t have a clue what it was, what to do with it or what it tasted like. I’d also never made a soup in my life so luckily, the prize came with full instructions.
My caption for this photo on Facebook was: Soup from last week’s raffle win. Butternut squash, carrots, onion and curry powder. Veg stock to cover. Cooked until soft and then blended. My first ever soup and it’s amazing!!!
What the post didn’t cover was that I almost lost a finger whilst trying to figure out how to chop it up, I started to try to peel it like a potato which really wasn’t successful and that using a handheld blender on a large pan of soup is not particularly easy to control and my poor kitchen was an absolute state after finally getting it blended and cleaning bits of soup off the cupboards and tiles took probably the same amount of time as making the soup in the first place!
It was a while before I started experimenting more with different recipes but now, butternut squash is an absolute staple on my weekly shopping list and its definitely one of, if not, my favourite vegetables and when I had my allotment, the year we had the bumper crop of butternut squash was one of my favourite years!
Top favourite recipe of the moment: harissa baked butternut squash with feta and seeds - serves 2
Ingredients
- 1 small butternut squash, halved and scoop out the seeds. (You don’t need to peel it, the skin is edible and full of nutrients)
- 1 tsp of harissa pasta
- 1 tbsp of honey
- 15 ml of virgin olive oil
- Low calorie spray oil
- 30g of mixed seeds (I use pumpkin and sunflower)
- 80g of feta cheese chopped
- a few sprigs of fresh mint
- a handful of spinach or any salad leaves of your choice
Method
- Preheat the oven to 220°C / gas mark 7 and line a baking tray with baking paper.
- Place the squash halves on the baking sheet, cut side down and spray with low calorie spray oil. Roast for 15 minutes to soften.
- Meanwhile, in a small bowl, stir together the harissa paste, honey and olive oil.
- Remove the butternut squash from the oven and cut into slices.
- Brush half of the mixture on the squash and place back in the oven for 20 minutes.
- Remove the squash, brush with the remaining harissa mixture and bake for another 16 to 20 minutes until cooked through.
- Place the squash on your plate and garnish with pumpkin seeds, feta cheese and mint. Enjoy!
My most used butternut squash dish - chips!
At least once a week, I’ll make butternut squash chips – usually to serve with dinner to boost my vegetable intake, but if I’ve got the oven on, I’ll often add a tray of butternut squash chips to cook as I love them cold too and will have them for lunch or thrown in a salad later in the week. They keep for about 3 days in the fridge.
- Preheat your oven to 200°C / gas mark 6.
- Slice your butternut squash into rounds (don’t bother peeling it)
- Then chop into chip shapes.
- Cover a baking tray with baking paper and spread your chips on top in an even layer.
- Spray with low calorie spray oil and sprinkle with any seasoning you like.
- Put in the oven for about 45 minutes turning them half way through.
Other favourites
I know have a soup maker to make my vegetable soups and pretty much all of the soups I make will have a handful of chopped butternut squash thrown in.
Roasted – I love roasted veg both as part of dinner and served hot but also as leftovers in salads so I’ll add cubed butternut squash to any tray of veg that I am roasting.
Risotto – I’m not the best at making risotto and the results are usually a bit hit or miss but my best attempts have been delicious with roasted butternut squash in them.
Curry – cubed butternut squash goes lovely in a curry too.
I am also a fan of ‘pre-cut’ or ‘pre-prepared’ packs of butternut squash in funky shapes – I miss the days when Sainsburys used to have butternut squash waffles, you can buy butternut squash spaghetti or noodles from some supermarkets which are a great low carb alternative to pasta or noodles.
I’ve got a butternut here I was going to make soup but I like the look of this. I have all ingredients except Harissa paste, I have Harissa seasoning can I use instead? Thanks Linda x
I’m sure it will be fine, I’ve not tried it with seasoning but I can’t see why not! Let me know if you try it and how it works out