Two Winter Squash Recipes, posted by Melinda

Both of these recipes are from Chef Jonathan Miller, who is associated with Mariquita Farm in California. Like our Gabriella Follo, Miller is a personal chef and caterer. These recipes, while written for acorn squash, should work with any winter squash, as long as you adjust the ingredients to suit a larger squash like a butternut squash or cooking pumpkin.

This is dry polenta; it's more coarsely ground than
cornmeal (image source)

Polenta Stuffed Squash--Polenta (ground dried corn: see above) can be bought in bulk, in 1-lb bags at places like Martindale's in Springfield, PA, or online. Don't buy the tubes of already cooked polenta for this recipe. (Btw, Martindale's is one of the oldest local businesses in the whole greater Philadelphia area: established in 1869! Great products, lovely people, a little pricey, but worth it for the quality.)

• 1 acorn squash, halved [inside gunk gets removed after baking]
• 2 cups milk [dairy or otherwise]
• 1/2 cup dried polenta
• butter [or oil]
• 1/2 lb mushrooms, quartered
• 3 tbsp tarragon leaves, chopped
• 1/2 lemon
• 3 tbsp mascarpone [an Italian cross b/tw cream & cream cheese--click here for a dairy-free substitute for mascarpone; there's another, sweeter dairy-free recipe for mascarpone on this page: http://chocochichi.com/2010/02/28/vegan-tiramisu/]
• sprouts [or chopped parsley] for garnish

Put the squash cut sides down on a parchment [or foil] lined baking sheet. Roast at 400 F till the squash is soft all the way thru, ~1 hr. Scoop out seeds and strings. In small saucepan, heat milk w/ a little salt. Add polenta slowly, whisking constantly, & cook till it thickens up,~15 min. In small fry pan, melt 1 to 2 tbsp butter & saute mushrooms w/ some salt till softened. Add tarragon, juice from a half lemon, and the mascarpone. Stir well, then incorporate everything into the polenta. Stir & taste--adjust seasoning to taste. Scoop the polenta into the squash & serve warm, topped w/ sprouts or parsley tossed in oil & a little lemon.

Portobello mushrooms (photo source)

Roast Squash Appetizers--also by Jonathan Miller

• 1 acorn squash
• 1 to 2 tbsp mascarpone cheese
• 4 to 6 sage leaves, chopped
• 2 portobello mushrooms, stems discarded [Those are the big guys sometimes used as vegan burgers--see photo above. Btw, save stems to enrich homemade stock if you want.]
• olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 sourdough baguette, sliced in thin rounds (you can "refresh" it in the oven before slicing, if you wish)
• chopped chives

Heat oven to 400 F. Cut squash in half lengthwise and put cut sides down on parchment or foil covered baking sheet. Roast in oven till very soft & caramelized, ~45-60 min. Cool and scoop out seeds and stringy stuff. Then scoop out the flesh and mash it in a small bowl. Add a little salt, the mascarpone, and the chopped sage. Adjust seasoning to taste. Meanwhile, while squash is baking, roast the portobello caps. After discarding [or saving] stems, drizzle some olive oil, salt, & some of garlic on the gill side [underside] of each cap. Roast in oven ~10-15 min. or till very soft. When cool, cut in small wedges. Spread a little roasted squash on each baguette slice, top it w/ a couple portobello wedges, finish w/ a sprinkle of chives, and serve.