Hello, Autumn! While the weather keeps flip-flopping from bitter cold to unusually warm for late September, I am in full Fall mode, complete with infinity scarves and chunky sweaters. The Farmer’s Markets in my area are still full of goodies but have finally gotten a huge supply of my favorite ingredient to cook with: winter squash. While I am a big fan of delicata and acorn squash, I absolutely adore kabocha. Kabocha is a hard, squat squash that can range in skin colors from dark green to bright orange. It has the texture of a sweet potato and pumpkin hypbrid and an amazingly sweet taste. Like other bright orange vegetables, kabocha is full of beta carotene, which is essential for a healthy immune system, cell repair, and healthy skin. I love to roast or steam the squash and simply eat it with a spoon, but recently came up with a delicious pudding recipe. The roasting brings out the naturally sweet flavor of the flesh and is the perfect dessert (or breakfast!) for the start of Fall.
Roasted Kabocha Squash Pudding
Ingredients:
1 large kabocha squash- halved and drizzled with a bit of walnut or coconut oil- you can also cube for faster cooking
1 cup vanilla almond milk
1/4 cup maple syrup (may be altered based on sweetness preference)
1 tspn each nutmeg, cinnamon, and ginger
1/2 cup coconut milk
Directions:
1. Heat oven to 400*F
2. Remove seeds from halved squash with a spoon and discard. Drizzle walnut or coconut oil, place on a roasting pan, and roast for 30-40 minutes depending on squash size and oven. Check every 15 minutes.
3. Once roasted, scoop out flesh and place in a food processor with almond milk, spices, half of the coconut milk and maple syrup. Purée until smooth
4. In a sauce pan, pour remainder of the coconut milk in and bring to a simmer. Add squash purée and simmer, stirring occasionally, until thickened.
5. Serve warm (it’s just as good cold!).
