STUFFED INDELICATA SQUASH, or, “What to do with those leftover Thanksgiving decorations”

Down Home...

OK… so we have a little landscaping challenge right now. And when we decided to invite a few neighbors over last month, it was really embarrassing to think about, having visions of “Tobacco Road.” To solve this, however temporarily, I bought a whole bunch of pumpkins and assorted squashes from the overflowing bin at the grocery store, scattered some straw on the ground by the front steps, along with some corn stalks from Bruce’s “South 40” corn patch, and made the entry look a little less like “down home in the southern swamps” and more like an overflowing squash bin at the grocery store.

But that’s another story. This story is about what to do with all those squashes and pumpkins once the party’s over. 

The obvious first move was to convert the large pumpkins to delicious pumpkin pies for Thanksgiving and to the many pounds of pumpkin purée and homemade pie fillings that now occupy our freezer.  Yummy. I will never go back to the canned type!  Here’s a hint:  most recipes call for the small round “sweet pie” pumpkins like the orange one in the photo.  These are easiest to handle, but not much better tasting than the gigantic variety.  The secret to punkin pie perfection is buying (or growing) the little white ones, about 8-10” in diameter.  When you bake these little guys, they literally ooze honey, and are THE most delicious for pies!  (I have many seeds, free on request!)

But that too is another story.  This story is about the last mystery squash that, in spite of being nameless, was about to be transformed into an incredibly delicious one-dish meal for about six people. Basically, squash is squash, not too exciting or flavor-packed, and we didn’t find that much variation in taste among the types we had on hand.  So when it came down to the Last Squash In The Basket, we wanted to get a little creative.  A quick check of the fridge, the grain bin, and the pantry revealed barley, celery and Italian sausage, and I knew there was no way to go wrong here.

Here’s what you need to make this happen:

1 large indelicata squash (because it wasn’t exactly a Delicata, being much bigger, different shape and different color).  Cut it in half the long way and bake it cut side down on parchment paper for about 40 minutes at 375º, or until the flesh is very tender.  Clean out all the seeds and strings and set aside.

Olive oil (to coat the squash and for sautéing the veggies)

1 cup rinsed barley (cooked in chicken stock, according to directions, about 45 minutes or so)

3 cups chicken stock (for cooking barley)

½ lb mild Italian sausage

1 onion

2 large garlic cloves

3 cups chicken stock

½ cup sun-dried tomatoes (dry ones, not packed in oil)

chopped celery (two stalks)

Thyme

Sage

Rosemary

Lovage

Healthy slug of white wine

½ cup pine nuts

½ cup grated Jarlsberg

½ cup grated Emmenthaler

½ cup grated Parmesan

½ cup Panko bread crumbs

Salt & Pepper

Prepare the squash, prepare the barley, chop the onions, celery, garlic.  Grate all the cheeses into individual dishes.  Sauté onions and garlic, add celery and herbs and cook all together.  Sauté the Italian sausage and combine in a large skillet with the onion mixture.  You will need copious quantities of dry white wine (for both the cook and the pot).  About halfway through cooking all this, add sun-dried tomatoes and pine nuts.  Adjust the seasoning if needed.  When you’re happy with the doneness and taste, remove from heat and let sit.

Putting it all together:  To the meat and barley pan, add the grated Jarlsberg and Emmenthaler cheeses and mix well.  This mixture constitutes the stuffing you will pile high onto the two halves of your squash.  If there’s some left over, don’t worry.  It’s delicious as a side dish on its own, or you could roast another turkey and use this for stuffing (or, maybe next year).

Now, mix the Panko crumbs and the Parmesan together and sprinkle all over the tops of your creations, pop into a 375º oven for about 25 minutes, and voilá!  A nice Caesar salad on the side makes this a very simple, healthful, nutritious dinner!

So there ya go… just another adventure in dining at Bufflehead Pond Farm. Come join us and taste for yourself! 

Happy New Year, and don’t forget the black-eyed peas!

Dee & Bruce