What’s the best way to peel and cut up a big winter squash?
Just don’t. There is no technique or tool that makes this anything less than a messy and perilous job. Years ago, I was trying desperately to cut a huge Hubbard squash into manageable pieces, and, ultimately, I just put it into a heavy-duty garbage bag, stood on a table and dropped it onto the floor. (This works, by the way.)
I shy away from pre-prepped produce at the market — you’ll never see me buying peeled garlic or diced onion — but I will buy peeled, cut-up butternut squash.
But there’s another option, one that I use 90 percent of the squash-cooking time: Roast it. The most delectable squash puree is this easy to achieve: Cut your squash in half through the stem end. Remove the seeds. Place the two halves cut-side down on a baking sheet and roast at 400 degrees until the flesh is tender, anywhere from 40 to 60 minutes. Spoon out the flesh and, if you want to make it really smooth, put it through a food mill or sieve.
A fully cooked squash gives easily when prodded, and a sharp knife will penetrate its skin with no resistance. If you roast it on a nonstick baking sheet or one covered with parchment paper or a Silpat, cleanup will be that much easier.
There are about a dozen winter squash varieties out there, and all of them will yield to this treatment, from commonest butternut or acorn to the plumpest Kabocha to the most monstrous Hubbard. A roasted 3-pound squash will yield a little less than 3 cups of puree.
All that puree needs is some salt and pepper and, if you like, some butter or olive oil. Sweeten it with maple syrup or make it savory by mixing grated Parmesan in it.
Boxy little Sweet Dumplings and Jack Be Littles take particularly well to being stuffed and roasted whole. Cut off their “lids” and scoop out the seeds (as if you were carving a jack-o-lantern), then throw in some salt and pepper and whatever else you fancy — herbs, garlic, grated cheese — along with a spoonful or two of olive oil, butter or cream, and roast for about 45 minutes. (For the slightly larger Carnival, Buttercup or Kuri, make a little ring of aluminum foil for them to stand on, and bake for closer to an hour.)
With their thin, edible skin and cylindrical shape, delicata squash can simply be sliced into rings and roasted.
Roasted Delicata Rounds
Makes 4 servings.
2 delicata squash
Extra-virgin olive oil
Salt
Pepper
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Cut off both ends of each squash, then cut in half through its “waist.” Use a paring knife or teaspoon, remove seeds while leaving cylinder intact. Slice squash into thin rings, no more than 1/4 inch thick.
Lightly oil a nonstick (or parchment or Silpat-covered) baking sheet. Place slices on sheet and sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Flip slices over and sprinkle again. Bake 10 to 15 minutes, checking often to see if undersides of rings are nicely browned. When they are, flip and bake 5 to 10 minutes longer, until top sides are browned.
