A Fall Vegetable

Not too many years ago, fresh fruits and vegetables were precious and only available seasonally. My mom has a July birthday, and in Austria strawberries were only available around her birthday, and she loved them on her cake. Now our global marketplace allows us to eat pretty much anything anytime. This is fabulous when you're pregnant and craving strawberries in the dead of winter, or you live in Arkansas and have a baby who loves mangoes. Unfortunately, I think it's actually hurt our society's eating habits sometimes. Produce that has been shipped all over the world is more expensive (and harms the environment in the process), leading people to choose canned or processed foods rather than seeking out fresh foods that are in season.

So, with that lecture out of the way, let me introduce you to Henry's favorite food (at the moment): BUTTERNUT SQUASH.

Butternut squash is sweet and oh so easy to cook. It's a fabulous source of fiber, vitamin C, vitamin A, magnesium and potassium. And everyone loves it! I bought a HUGE butternut squash at Whole Foods yesterday (I mean huge) and thought I would cook it all so that Henry could snack on it for a few days, and... no leftovers (and this was with a roast and salad)! Store it in a cool, dry place, and it will stay fresh for months. Offer it to your baby and it will be gone in minutes.

Butternut squash can be roasted (like most winter squashes) simply by cutting it in half, removing the seeds, brushing some oil on it, and then placing it cut side down on a baking sheet, and roasting for 45-60 minutes. If you want to be fancy, you can roast wedges with butter and brown sugar or maple syrup. You can make soup, bread, pie, risotto and lots of other things with the roasted squash (if you can keep your baby from eating it all!)

Or if you don't have time, you can do what I did tonight - make Butternut Squash with Brown Butter (a Martha Stewart recipe). Peel and cut the squash into 3/4 inch cubes.


Brown 2 Tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When the butter is nice and brown, add the squash and cook, stilling occasionally, until soft - about 15 minutes. Then add 1/2 cup chicken broth, 1/4 cup water, and 1 Tablespoon brown sugar and continue cooking until the liquid has cooked off - about 6 more minutes.