Squash

The squash family are actually berries. These fruits are often labeled vegetables. Squash (Cucurbitaceae) are edible members of the gourd family and fall into two categories: Summer Squash (known as vegetable or Italian marrow) and Winter Squash (genus maxima).

Squashes are native to the Americas and were one of the 'three sisters' planted and harvested by Native Americans. The three sisters were the three main indigenous plants used for agriculture: maize (corn), beans, and squash. The three were usually planted together: the cornstalk provided support for the climbing beans and shade for the squash. Squash is believed to have originated in Mexico and Central America where people have been eating it for at least 7500 years. Native Americans shared many varieties of squash with the European settlers, who carried the seeds back to their home countries.

The fruit of the squash is not the only edible portion of the plant: seeds can be eaten raw or toasted or ground into paste and pressed for oil. The shoots, leaves, and tendrils can be eaten as greens. The blossoms are an important part of Native American cooking and are also used in cuisines worldwide.

Summer Squash
Winter Squash
How to Buy
How to Store
How to Prepare
How to Use
Freezing Squash
Recipes
Fun Facts
Varieties

Summer Squash

Harvested during the summer, these squashes (pattypan, yellow crookneck, zucchini) have tender skins and the fruit is relatively small. These squash are consumed almost immediately and require little to no cooking.

Winter Squash

Winter Squashes (butternut, hubbard, buttercup, acorn, spaghetti squash) are harvested at the end of summer, generally cured to further harden the skin, and stored in a cool place for eating later. These squashes require a longer cooking time than their counterparts, the summer squash. All varieties of winter squash are great for puréeing, steaming, roasting, and baking. The rind or peel is very thick and difficult to remove without a sharp chef's knife or professional peeler.

How to Buy:

Summer Squash:
~skin should be thin and easily pierced with a thumbnail~

Winter Squash:
~Squash should feel heavy and full~
~Larger squash may have a bigger seed cavity with less flesh~
~Look for sturdy, heavy squash with glossy unblemished skin, but not too shiny~
~The squash should have no soft spots, cuts, breaks, or uncharacteristic discolorations, especially around the stem end~
~Look for squash with smooth, tough, dry skin and intense color~

How to Store:

Summer Squash:
~Store in refrigerator's vegetable crisper unwashed and use within a few days of purchase~

Winter Squash:
~Place squash on top of thick pads of newspapers in a cool, dry, well-ventilated location. Check on a regular basis for rot and use within three to six months~
~Tightly wrap cut pieces of winter squash and refrigerate. Use within a five days of cutting or purchasing~

How to Prepare:

Summer Squash:
~Wash summer squash varieties only just before use~

Winter Squash:
Winter squash matures on the vine and develops an inedible, thick, hard rind, and tough seeds. Because this rind makes most squash difficult to peel, it's easier to cook the unpeeled squash, and then scoop out the cooked flesh. Wash the exterior of the squash just before using. The seeds are scooped out before or after cooking.

~To cut in half, grasp the squash firmly and use a sharp knife to slice through to the center. Flip and cut the other side until the squash falls open. Remove and discard the seeds~
~To bake a whole (1 to 1½ pound) winter squash, pierce the rind with a fork and bake in a 350 degree oven 45 minutes. Test for doneness by piercing with a fork~
~Boil or steam quarters, cubes, or rings 25 minutes or until tender~

How to Use:

Summer Squash:
~Wash summer squash only just before use~
~Summer squash can be grilled, steamed, boiled, sautéed, fried, or used in stir fry recipes~
~Excellent served raw in salads or on crudités~

Winter Squash:
~All varieties of Winter Squash are great for puréeing, roasting, and baking. Once squash is cooked and mashed, it can be used in soups, main dishes, vegetable side dishes, breads, muffins, custards and pies~
~Boil or mash winter squash just like potatoes; add peeled squash cubes to soups, stews, beans, gratins, and vegetable ragouts~
~Dress any cooked winter squash with butter and herbs, cream sauce, cheese sauce, maple syrup, nuts, marinara sauce, or stewed fruit~

Freezing Squash:

Summer Squash:
(Cocozelle, Crookneck, Pattypan, Straightneck, White Scallop, Zucchini)
~Choose young squash with tender skin~
~Wash and cut in ½-inch slices, blanch in boiling, salted water 3 minutes, cool, drain, and package (leaving ½-inch headspace), seal, and freeze~

Winter Squash:
~Wash, peel, and cut winter squash into small pieces (be sure to remove seeds). Cook until soft. Mash pulp or put through sieve. Cool by placing pan containing squash over crushed ice and stir until cool. Place in an appropriate freeze bag, or container, with ½-headspace; freeze~

Recipes

Squash Soup with Pecans
Risotto alla Zucca
Tortelli di Zucca
Southwest Squash Soup
Zucchini Ribbon Salad with Red Pepper
Summer Squash Sauté

Fun Facts

~The gourd family includes many economically important fruits, including pumpkins, squash, melons, and cucumbers~
~Gourds are used by people throughout the world for musical instruments, including shakers, maracas, drums, horns, marimbas and various string gourds resembling a banjo~
~Gourds have been used for pipes, masks, canteens, water jugs, dippers, birdhouses, and bath sponges~
~The standard coin of Haiti is called the 'gourde' because the governor of northern Haiti declared the gourd as national currency in 1807~
~Keene, New Hampshire, holds the record for the number for the most lit jack-o-lanterns on display at any one time with 28,952 decorated and carved gourds~
~Stephen Clarke, of Havertown, Pennsylvania, holds the Guinness World Record for the fastest time to carve a face into a pumpkin: 24.03 seconds—he broke his previous record on July 23, 2006, at Universal Studios, Orlando, Florida, as part of Food Network Challenge~
~Morton, Illinois, is the self-proclaimed Pumpkin Capital of the World. Morton is the home of Nestle/Libby Foods' pumpkin canning plant~
~Punkin Chuckin': The longest distance for chucking a pumpkin is 4860 ft, shot with an Q36 Pumpkin Modulator Air Cannon in 2001 at the Morton, Illinois, Punkin Chuckin' Contest~
~The biggest pumpkin pie was made in New Bremen, Ohio; it measured 12 feet, 4 inches in diameter and weighed 2020 pounds~
~Angier, North Carolina, is the home of Marvin Johnson's Gourd Museum, which houses hundreds of painted gourds, gourd art, and gourd carvings~

Summer Squash:

Scallop or Pattypan - is round and flattened like a plate with scalloped edges, usually white but sometimes yellow or green.

Constricted Neck - is thinner at the stem end than the blossom end, classified as either "crookneck" or "straightneck" depending on if the stem end is straight or bent, and is usually yellow.

Italian Marrows - such as zucchini, cocozelle, and caserta, are usually shades of green, but may be yellow or nearly white.

Zucchini - exist in many forms and colors, usually a mottled dark green. The flesh is a whitish-pale green with edible seeds. Some zucchini varieties include: Costata Romanesca, Golden Zucchini, Middle Eastern Zucchini, Round Zucchini, Tatume, and Zypher.

Yellow Squash - range from a bright yellow to a deep golden yellow. The shape is like a crooked vase. The flesh is whitish-pale green with edible seeds.

Winter Squash:

Acorn - Easily found in supermarkets. As its name suggests, this winter squash is shaped like an acorn. It has sweet, slightly fibrous flesh. Its distinct ribs run the length of its hard, blackish-green or golden-yellow skin. In addition to the dark green acorn, there are now golden and multi-colored varieties. Good baking squash

Ambercup - A relative of the buttercup squash that resembles a small pumpkin. Bright orange flesh has a dry sweet taste. Has an extraordinarily long storage life.

Autumn Cup - A hybrid semi-bush buttercup dark green squash. Rich flavored flesh and high yields.

Banana - In shape and skin color, this winter squash is reminiscent of a banana. Its bright orange, finely-textured flesh is sweet. Banana squash is often available cut into smaller pieces.

Butternut - Easily found in supermarkets. Beige colored and shaped like a vase. This is a more watery squash and tastes somewhat similar to sweet potatoes. It has a bulbous end and pale, creamy skin, with fine-textured, deep-orange flesh with a sweet, nutty flavor. The deeper orange the color, the riper, drier, and sweeter the squash.  

Buttercup - Buttercup Squash are part of the Turban squash family (hard shells with turban-like shapes) and are a popular variety of winter squash. It has a sweet and creamy orange flesh. This squash is much sweeter than other winter varieties. Buttercup Squash can be baked, mashed, puréed, steamed, simmered, or stuffed and can replace Sweet Potatoes in most recipes.

Carnival Squash - Cream-colored with orange spots or pale green with dark green spots in vertical stripes—coloration sometimes divided part and part—golden flesh. Carnival Squash have hard, thick skins and only the flesh is eaten. The delicious yellow meat is reminiscent of sweet potatoes and butternut squash and can be baked or steamed and then combined with butter and fresh herbs.

Delicata - Also called Sweet Potato, Peanut Squash, and Bohemian squash. This is one of the tastier winter squashes, with creamy pulp that tastes a bit like sweet potatoes. Size may range from 5 to 10 inches in length. The squash can be baked or steamed. The skin is also edible. The delicata squash is actually an heirloom variety, a fairly recent reentry into the culinary world. This squash has a thin skin, so it does not have a long shelf life.

Gold Nugget - A variety of winter squash, which is sometimes referred to as an Oriental pumpkin, which has the appearance of a small pumpkin in shape and color. It ranges in size from one to three pounds. Golden nugget squashes are small, weighing on average about 1 pound. Both the skin and the flesh are orange. Gold Nugget Squash may be cooked whole or split lengthwise (removing seeds). Pierce whole squash in several places and bake halved squash hollow side up.

Hubbard - The extra-hard skins make the Hubbard one of the best keeping winter squashes. These are very large and irregularly shaped, with a skin that is "warted" and irregular. Hubbards can range from big to enormous, have a blue/gray skin, and taper at the ends. Like all winter squash, they have an inedible skin, large, fully developed seeds that must be scooped out, and a dense flesh. Hubbard squash is often sold in pieces because it can grow to cumbersome sizes. The yellow flesh tends to be very moist and longer cooking times in the oven are needed. They are generally peeled and boiled, cut up and roasted, or cut small and steamed or sautéed. It's perfect for pies. Hubbard squash, if in good condition initially, can be successfully stored 6 months at 50 to 55 degrees with 70% relative humidity. A 15% loss in weight from shrinkage for 6 months storage would be average. Less rot will develop in the Hubbard squash if stems are completely removed before storage. Hubbard squash and other dark-green-skinned squashes should not be stored near apples, as the ethylene from apples may cause the skin to turn orange-yellow.

Kabocha (Also known as a Ebisu, Delica, Hoka, Hokkaido, or Japanese Pumpkin) - Kabocha is the generic Japanese word for squash, but refers most commonly to a squash of the buttercup type. Kobocha Squash may be cooked whole or split lengthwise (removing seeds). It has a rich sweet flavor, and often dry and flaky when cooked. Use in any dish in which buttercup squash would work.

Spaghetti (also called vegetable spaghetti, vegetable marrow, noodle squash, or squaghetti) - A small, watermelon-shaped variety, ranges in size from 2 to 5 pounds or more. It has a golden-yellow, oval shape and a mild, nutlike flavor. When cooked, the flesh separates in strands that resemble spaghetti pasta. The yellowiest Spaghetti squash will be the ripest and best to eat. Those that are nearly white are not very ripe. To prepare spaghetti squash, cut the gourd in half lengthwise and remove the seeds, then bake or boil it until tender. Once cooked, use a fork to rake out the "spaghetti-like" stringy flesh, and serve. Spaghetti Squash can be stored at room temperature for about a month. After cutting, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate up to 2 days. Spaghetti squash also freezes well.