Acorn Squash (Paleo, GAPS)

Time for an easy recipe.

You see, things need to be easy around here. They don’t need to take much brain power, or effort, or engery, or anything else. Life is crazy enough as it is – that’s why my recipes are simple and I’m pretty sure they will always be simple.

At least I like to think so.

My children love acorn squash. It’s a mildly sweet winter squash, and it is very easy for a mama to prepare. Here are the deets on this lovely vegetable.

Acorn Squash Benefits

According to The World’s Healthiest Foods, acorn squash are very healthy for you:

• Excellent source of alpha- and beta-carotene, which are antioxidants – pair with a healthy fat for best nutrient absorption
• Great source of Vitamin C (another antioxidant)
• Anti-inflammatory
• Contains ALA omega-3 fats
• Contains blood sugar-regulating compounds
• Good source of B-vitamins (B1, B3, B6, Pantothenic Acid, and Folate)

Amazing. Apparently it was Hippocrates who once said, “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” I think that should be part of the Hippocratic Oath! 🙂 And I am glad to know that acorn squash are very nutritious.

How to Prepare Pureed Acorn Squash

Ingredients

• 1 large or 2 small acorn squash
• 2 tablespoons ghee, butter, or coconut oil
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (if you’re on the GAPS Intro diet, make sure you are on Stage 6)
• you can add honey or maple syrup (only honey is GAPS legal) –  but I really find that this is not necessary for us. It is sweet enough as it is and I can get away with not adding any sweetener and my kiddos still lap it up.

Equipment

• large baking dish
• immersion blender
• chef’s knife
• medium sized bowl

Instructions

Going along with this easy theme, I find the simplest way to prepare acorn squash is to bake it. Here are the steps:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Using a large chef’s knife, (be careful!) cut the acorn squash along one of the natural lines. Follow the cut all the way around. You can change direction if you need to. Finally, when most of the squash has been cut, pull the sides away from one another until it splits.
3. Many recipes call for you to score the squash with a knife and coat with some type of fat, but I have found that this is not necessary since we are going to puree it. If you would like to go ahead and score/coat the squash, please feel free to. 🙂
4. Place the squash, cut side up, in the pan. You can cover with aluminum foil if you want to. (If I cover with aluminum foil – sometimes I do, sometimes I don’t – I tilt the squash a bit so the foil comes into contact with as little as possible of the squash.)
5. Bake at 400 for 1 hour. When finished, use a large spoon to scoop out the flesh. (I like to use tongs to hold one side while I scoop.)
6. Place the scooped out squash into a medium-sized bowl. Add ghee/butter/coconut oil, and cinnamon. Puree until smooth.

Notes

Like I mentioned, this is sweet enough for us as is. It’s treated like a dessert at our house, served at the end of a meal. Our kids love it. But if you really want a dessert dish, try my Acorn Squash Custard! It’s healthy and yummy, too.

How do you like to prepare acorn squash? Is it a regular fixture at your place?

Love,

Dandy