'Golden Apple' Squash Crème Caramels

I am rather pleased with myself, having made my first crème caramel of sorts at the weekend.
This recipe makes one 4 pint dish, but as I am not expecting any guests, I decided to make 8 individual (different shaped) ramekins that could be eaten during the course of the week. Hopefully, we’ll have some friends over and help us eat some of these, as they are rather luscious and rich for just 2 people, so any unexpected guests are most welcome.

But these crème caramels were far from perfect. I have to admit, I over caramelised the caramel by a couple of minutes, you could just about taste it being a bit scorched. Also as I had roasted and pureed the squashes from scratch for this recipe, I noted that I had not pureed it enough as there was still some strands that made the dish a little grainy, but we didn’t mind that texture. It reminded us that these were our home grown 'golden apples' squashes.
Also, as we were impatient, we didn’t chill the first couple we tasted, so as you can see the caramel has spread all over the place.

It also tasted a bit like semolina, but on being chilled overnight. It was completely different, much better as the caramel had set, albeit a little too much. The only grumble I got from D is the washing of the ramekins. Some of the caramel stuck to the surface and will need a bit of pounding with the back of a spoon to come off.

'Golden Apple' Squash Crème Caramels
Makes 8 – 10 ramekins or 1 x 4 pint dish.
Ingredients
400g sugar
300ml whole milk
300ml evaporated milk
5 medium eggs
¼ teaspoon salt
350 – 400ml pureed squash or pumpkin

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon ground allspice
Method
Preheat oven to Gas mark 4 (see sidebar for conversions). Melt 225g of the sugar in a heavy-bottomed pan over medium heat. When the sugar has melted and a rich golden caramel colour, pour the caramel into the bowl or each of the ramekin dishes and immediately begin tilting the dishes around so that the caramel coats both the bottom and the sides. Set the prepared bowl or ramekin dishes aside.
Scald the milk, stop short of boiling. In a mixing bowl, beat the eggs with the remaining sugar until they are smooth and getting thick. Add the salt, the pureed squash or pumpkin, and the spices and beat again. Gently pour in the milk through a strainer and add it to the mixture, still beating.
Pour the mixture into the prepared dish or ramekins and place it on a large baking tray that has at least 1 inch of water in it. Put the tray carefully into the oven, and bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour. The cream should be golden brown on top, it should tremble only a little when shaken and a thin knife insert in the centre should come out clean.
Set the dish or ramekins on a rack and allow to cool at room temperature, then cover tightly and chill in the fridge. To unmould, loosen the sides by slipping a sharp knife around the edges, when the cream moves freely in its dish, turn onto plate(s). The cream will drop out, and the gleaming caramel should pour around it. If you’ve made a larger one, cut into wedges and serve. Recipe adapted From Anna’s Kitchen.

'Golden Apple' Squash muffins galore

You may recall I harvested a load of 'golden apple' squashes from my allotment plot last year. Well I still have a load of them dotted decoratively around the flat, including these prettily displayed in a vase.
I decided to make some more muffins with them, but these ones were slightly different from the Squash cheesecake muffins that I've made in the past. I think these are much easier to put together, as you don't have the bother of roasting and pureeing the squash, these simply needed to be peeled and grated it raw.

These are not the high tower muffins, but little spongy ones. You can top with some cream cheese, but I don’t tend to as I think the majority of muffins I make are sweet enough. The flavour of these reminded me of Indian style halwa which is made with semolina: grainy and a little sweet, but not overly.
Now what to do with the other twenty 'golden apple' squashes...

'Golden Apple' Squash Muffins
Makes 10 - 12
Ingredients
100ml sunflower oil
110g soft light brown sugar
2 eggs
110g self-raising flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 salt
Squash, peeled and seeded, then grated weighing about 140g
40g raisins or sultanas
Method
Preheat oven to gas mark 5. Line a tray of 12 muffin tins with paper cases. Whisk the oil and sugar together and beat in the eggs one at a time until the mixture is well combined. Sift the flour with the baking powder, soda, salt and cinnamon. Fold into the mixture together with the dried fruit and grated squash. Combine well and spoon into the muffin cases evenly and bake in the centre of the preheated oven for 20 - 30 minutes until risen and firm when pressed lightly. Adapted from the Leiths Vegetarian Bible which uses pumpkin.

White chocolate chip and squash cookies

Most bloggers are making Christmas cookies and I will too, but at the moment I am still trying to find ways to use my sweet autumnal 'golden apple' squashes, so have ended up making some Misshapen White chocolate chip and squash cookies.

but they tasted good and were rather moreish. I am giving you the recipe below, but the ingredeint quantities are not exact, as I had to add a little extra flour here and a bit of this there. No matter how they turn out, please note that they will be edible.

White chocolate chip and squash cookies
Makes about 36
Ingredients
340g of plain flour
1 teaspoon each of baking soda; baking powder; cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
Pinch of nutmeg
¾ teaspoon salt
80g butter
170g dark brown sugar
200g of squash puree
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
50g white chocolate chips
Optional ½ cup of pecan shells
Method
Preheat oven gas mark 5. In a bowl, cream butter and sugar together. Beat in eggs ad vanilla. Stir in puree. In another bowl combine the flour, all of the spices and salt, stir in the puree and fold in the chocolate and pecans if using. Drop generous spoonfuls onto lightly greased trays about 2 inches apart. Cook for 15 – 20 minutes. Allow to cool and firm up.

The Mighty Squash

Most of us are pretty much familiar with the acorn squash, butternut squash, Hubbard squash, spaghetti squash and even the pattypan, but how many of us have heard of Blue Ballet, Delicata, Kabocha, Sweet Dumpling, Turban Squash, Yellow Crookneck, Uchiki Kuri and the cute Golden Apple Squash. To be absolutely honest, many of these were new to me too, until of course I started growing my own squashes and my knowledge began to extend, as well as my taste buds.

All squashes are members of the Curcurbita family that vary in colour, flavour, shape, size and textures. The three botanical species of squash that exist in the Curcurbita family are: Curcurbita pepo - includes acorn, gourds, summer squashes, spaghetti, table queen, and courgettes. Curcurbita maxima - banana, buttercup, golden nugget, hubbard, marblehead and pumpkin. Curcurbita moschata - includes butternut, calabaza, ponca and waltham.

I have not always been successful in growing pumpkins or squashes, especially when they start to bulk up, as some suddenly seem to rot and fall off. Nevertheless, they are easy to plant, don't require a great deal of work, and whether it’s a small squash or a large one they are really rewarding to harvest. These days with advanced horticultural practices, squashes are available all year round. There are winter squashes with tough skins that are mostly autumn harvested and soft-skinned summer squashes that are mostly available in summer.

Though considered a vegetable in culinary terms, botanically speaking, the squash is a fruit hence its use for sweet pies, tarts, and recently muffins as in my case. Squashes can also be eaten raw in salads, as well as cooked: stuffed, fried, baked, boiled, steamed, stir-fried, pureed and mashed. Both summer and winter squashes can be cut into bite-size pieces and added to soups and stews.

Other parts of the squash plant are edible. Squash seeds can be roasted or ground into paste. The tendrils and greens can also be eaten, as can the blossoms which are often stuffed and deep-fried. I recently learned that the squash was a staple in the Ancient American Indians diet. The Ancient American Indian extolled the squash to high status in the belief that the squash seeds would increase fertility if planted nearby. An expression used by Ancient American Indians about the squash was that it was ‘the apple of God’. I think that is beautiful.
Source: vegparadise and Wikepedia
I have so many ‘golden apple’ squashes rolling about, that I am still looking for ways to eat them. So I had decided to make a squash version of the strawberry cheesecake muffins, they turned out pretty good. Then I decided to make another version, this time the squash cream cheese was stirred into the muffin mixture, they were also a hit. Sometimes all you have to do is think ‘outside of the veg box’.
I am submitting this recipe into this weeks Weekend Herb Blogging#209 which celebrated its 4th Birthday last week. The weeks host will be Astrid from Paulchen's Foodblog. WHB is a weekly food blog event that showcases information and recipes about herbs, vegetables, fruits and other plant ingredients. WHB was initiated four years ago by Kalyn's Kitchen, it is now organized by Haalo of Cook (Almost) Anything At Least Once. It is such a wonderful food blogging event, if you have not participated in it, I would strongly encourage you to do so.
Squash cheesecake muffins: Two ways
Makes 6
Ingredients
115g caster sugar
4 tablespoons of cream cheese
4 tablespoons of cooked and pureed squash
175g plain flour
1 tablespoon of baking powder
Pinch of salt
20g unsalted butter, melted
1 egg
125ml milk
Icing sugar for dusting
Method
Preheat oven gas mark 4. Put half the sugar in a bowl, add the cream cheese, squash puree and mix together. Set aside.Sift the remaining sugar, flour and baking powder into a large bowl, then stir in the salt. In another bowl, beat the butter, egg, and milk together, then add to the dry ingredients until combined. Spoon half the batter into the muffin casings, then add a tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture to each one. Top with the remaining batter and bake for 20 minutes or until cooked through. Allow to cool, serve dusted with icing sugar.
D preferred these more than the ones above. Which one do you like?

Marbled Squash cheesecake muffins
Makes 12

Make a reliable recipe for plain muffins. When ready to put into each of the casings, gently stir in squash cheesecake puree which should be made up of 6 tablespoons of cream cheese, 6 tablespoons of cooked, squash puree and 2 tablespoons of caster sugar. The squash cream cheese should be stirred in so it resembles a marble effect. Spoon into muffins cases and bake according to recipe instructions. Allow to cool before sharing and enjoying.

Golden Autumnal days are gone...

For Sunday brunch I made some waffles using some of my 'golden apple' squash. Sorry no picture of them, they were eaten greedily on this wintery autumnal day before we braved the wind and rain for a quick visit to the allotment plot.

Golden Apple Squash waffles with pecan nuts
Serves 4
Ingredients
3 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup of squash (or pumpkin) puree
1/2 cup of pecan nuts, chopped
2 cups plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
Method
In a bowl, mix the wet ingredients together. In another bowl, stir together the dry ingredients. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and combine well. Add more milk if necessary. Cook according to your waffle maker instructions. Recipes adapted from Deborah Madisons Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone

Autumnal Scones

Since it's the season to showcase pumpkins and all things autumnal, I thought I would show off some of my beautiful golden apple squashes.
A couple of years ago when I used to get the train into work, I remember walking past a popular coffee outlet and seeing some pumpkin scones being advertised on the blackboard in the High Street. I never got round to trying them, but remember thinking that they sounded quite appealing. So what did I decide to do with the remainder of the pureed squash left over from the pancakes early in the week, well make some squash scones of course.

These scones are pretty much based on the recipe from the coffee shop, but with a few subtle changes. Making these squash scones also gave me the chance to use my pumpkin biscuit (cookie) cutter. I am so pleased with them. They are gently spiced and look quite impressive.
I am submitting this recipe to Grow your own (GYO) #37. GYO is usually a twice a month blogging event which was started by Andrea Meyer of Andrea's Recipes. I think this is a lovely food blogger event as it also supports the principle behind my blog that celebrates the fruit, vegetables and herbs we grow and the dishes we make using our homegrown produce. This is the last GYO of the year as it will go on winter hiatus, so understandably it is being hosted by Andrea.

Autumnal Squash Scones
Makes 8 – 10 scones
Ingredients
250g plain flour
75g dark brown sugar
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon ground clove
Generous grating of nutmeg
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
A pinch of salt
75g unsalted butter
75ml milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
75g cooked and pureed squash or pumpkin
Method
Mix together flour, sugar, spices, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Cut butter into small pieces and cut into flour. Mixture should look like coarse breadcrumbs. In another bowl mix together the pumpkin, milk and vanilla. Add most of the wet mixture (you may not need all of it as it depends on the consistency of your squash) to flour and mix until the dough comes together.Transfer to a lightly floured surface and knead gently. Then shape dough into a circle and roll out to about 1 ½ inches thick. Cut out shapes, re-roll the dough and cut out more shapes, until all of the dough has been used. Lay scones on a baking sheet that has been sprinkled lightly with plain flour. Bake in oven gas mark 5 for 25 minutes.

These scones are best eaten warm. I think these scones are delicious as is, but you can serve them with some whipped cream if you wish.

Golden Apple Squash Pancakes

I must confess I did not visit the allotment plot at all this weekend, the weather had been miserable: non stop rain and blustery strong winds. Even the thought of putting on my raincoat and wellies did not fill me with optimism to brave the rain and trod in the mud. No thanks I rather stay indoors than get my nose wet.
Instead I did some cooking with some of my allotment produce. I made these American style pancakes for br-unch (breakfast/lunch) yesterday. I had enough left over for breakfast this morning. Not as nice cold, but still flavourful and substantial.

I harvested a basketful of golden apple squash a little while ago, when they were still green (see above), they have all turned the promised beautiful golden colour. Stunning. I have not had much luck growing larger varieties, namely butternut squash, blue ballet and Uchiki Kuri – all of which produced only one squash to consume. Perhaps it’s the Scottish climate, perhaps I don’t have that touch or the experience that comes with growing larger varieties, but with the smaller varieties, I hit the jack pot. Last year I grew baby sweet lightning pumpkin, they were sweet to look at and sweet to eat, and this year I tried golden apple squash.

I got the recipe for this from Martha Stewarts website. However, I have substituted the pumpkin puree for squash puree. All I did was cut the squash in half and baked it in the oven until it was soft, then I allowed it to cool before scooping it out with a spoon. This squash puree did not require any additional sweeteners or cooking off, it was the right consistency to use in this recipe
Spiced Squash pancakes
Makes 8 – 10
Ingredients
160g/1 1/4 cup of plain flour
2 tablespoons caster sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder;
½ teaspoon each of cinnamon, ground ginger and salt
Grating of fresh nutmeg
Pinch of ground cloves
200ml/1 cup milk
6 tablespoons squash or pumpkin puree
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 egg
Method
Whisk the flour with sugar, baking powder and all the spices. In another bowl, mix together the milk, puree, oil and 1 egg; gently fold mixture into dry ingredients until well combined. Add a little oil to a frying pan and gently heat; drop in about 2 – 3 tablespoons of the batter for each pancake. Cook pancakes about 3 minutes on each side. Serve warm with nuts, honey or maple syrup.