What to do with Cushaw Squash

http://herliyanaindah.wordpress.com/2011/01/21/what-do-you-think-bout-squash/

I had a dear friend bestow upon me several Cushaw Squash.  These are huge things usually used for fall decorations and can often be found free along with pumpkins that people want to get rid of after Halloween.   (It is easy to find free pumpkins and squash this time of year.  My hubby once found a 30lb pumpkin tossed along a running path.  He brought it home and we cut it up and we canned several quarts of pumpkin, along with roasting the seeds…We have a motto in our home, never pass up free food!)

Cushaw squash is very mild in flavor and somewhat like a spaghetti squash in taste.   And they can be massive in size, which means that is a LOT of squash to contend with; but is it really?

These types of mild flavored squash (and there are several) have all kinds of uses.  My daughter was selling zucchini breads last summer at the farmers market.  The Cushaw is a very good replacement for zucchini.  It comes out a bit drier but that might not be a problem because this bread will make a peanut butter and honey sandwich that won’t fall apart in the making.  It makes a nice solid slice-able bread.

Squash Bread

3/4 cup grated squash

8 eggs

1/2 c melted butter

2 tbsp honey

1 tsp vanilla

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

3/4 coconut flour

Mix it all up in a bowl, pour into a bread pan lined with greased parchment paper, bake at 350 for about an hour until a knife comes out clean.

What else can one do with a Cushaw?

For starters, this is what I do with any of these “large” squash whether it be a Cushaw or a Blue Hubbard.  I cut them open, rake out the seeds and then I peel them.   After I peel them I put the peeled slices in a zipper bag and store it in the refrigerator for use throughout the week.  A few minutes of prep time gives me a week’s worth of at hand food to cook with.  Because these squash are so mild in flavor they take on the flavors that you add to them thus giving you an affordable way to stretch your food budget.

As I am cooking throughout the week I incorporate these squash into my meals.  Here are some ideas:

Fry bacon, then cook the squash in the grease along with some onions. Then crumble up the bacon, top with your favorite cheese

Use it like rice-cook ground beef, onions, and the squash then put in your favorite Mexican seasonings, or add your favorite Indian seasonings and top it yogurt cheese.  Or to make it  Italian in flavor add basil and tomatoes.  This concept is limitless and by peeling the squash in advance you have a ready made and fast meal at your finger tips.

Chop them up and fry them along with mushrooms and peppers.

Add them to leftover chicken and smother with tomatoes.

Cook by themselves in butter and coconut oil, smash them up and add some yogurt and Parmesan cheese, a light pinch of nutmeg, and salt.  Yum, this one is akin to risotto and is a delight!

As the weather is cooling off in this region, it is time for more soups.  This squash is being tossed into all kinds of soups.  It blends up well with other veggies and it also adds a nice texture to chunky soups.

Squash is one of the main food groups for GAPS/SCD because it is high in fiber and very good at fleshing out a meal. It is easy on the tummy and very affordable.   So do not neglect this squash because it seems overwhelming in size.

 

GAPS Sandwich Bean Bread

I confess, after years of being wheat free, the whole alternative bread thing was something that our family just learned to live without except an occasional loaf now and then…

Recently, I have been making Navy Bean Bread.  This recipe is not new with me…it is all over the internet and while I do not usually blog on the same topics as other authors, I think this one bears repeating.

2 cups of cooked pureed navy beans, soaked 24 hours before cooking

6 eggs yolks separated from the whites

2 1/4 tsp honey

3 tsp of cider vinegar

Blend all of this together in your food processor until it is smooth.

add

1 1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp baking soda (this can be omitted)

3/4 to 1 cup of coconut flour

Blend until smooth.  Pour over into a large mixing bowl.

Whip the 6 egg whites until they they get stiff and peak.  Then fold them into your bread dough.

Pour the dough into a bread pan that has been lined with parchment paper.  Bake at 300 for 1 1/2 hours.

Comments:  different brands of coconut flour vary in how much you use.  Tropical Traditions is not quite as finely milled as Red Bob’s and it does not take as much.  When paying by the pound that is a good thing.

Secondly: I have made this without separating the egg yolks from the whites and had a great success.  I left the batter in my food processor longer, working air into the dough.  I let my food processor run until there was a definite increase in the bowl…then I poured it over into my pans and immediately placed it in the oven.

Also, this bread freezes great so you can make up several batches at a time.

I have made this with lentils for a “brown bread”.

 

One Turkey Bread and One Turkey Cake

This page was inspired by my mother.  Years ago, she found a recipe in the newspaper to use ground turkey to make a cake similar to a mince pie in flavor. One day when talking with her about GAPS/SCD alternative foods, she suggested that I make something with ground turkey.   So for several weeks now, I have planned on trying to create a recipe….I finally remembered to buy a roll of ground turkey.

I’ve actually, made a bread and a cake with basically the same concept.  Ground turkey, eggs, and coconut flour.

Herb Bread

I took the basic Lois Lang bread recipe and removed the dry curd cheese and replaced it with a 1/2 pound of ground turkey.   I decided that I wanted to make an herb bread.  So I added salt and dried herbs (basil,oregano, thyme, rosemary, onion & garlic powder).   I used coconut flour instead of almond.  The mixture was far to dry so I added in some kefir whey to make it moist.

The final product is tasty but a bit too dry.  I dumped the bread out of the pan when it was too hot and it cracked in half.  I realized in hindsight that I did not use as much butter as the recipe called for.  I think that if I would have paid a bit more attention to that detail that it would not have been so dry.   This would be very good with a slice of cheese on it.   One could easily do this without the herbs for a regular bread.

 

Turkey Spice Cake

Again I started out with 1/2 pound of ground turkey and then added a cup of honey to it.  From there I added in 2 tsps of cinnamon, a dash of mace and nutmeg, 1/8 tsp of allspice, and 1/4 tsp of ground cloves and 1 tsp of good strong vanilla, 3 eggs and then coconut flour.  I did add a bit more butter to this one although not the full amount.  This could easily have had raisins and nuts added.  Apple sauce also would have been a good addition to moisten it up a bit.  The overall rating on this one was yummy.   So the kids can have their cake and their turkey, too!!

 

I basically did this post to introduce the idea of adding ground meats to breads and cakes.   The other day, I was thinking that using the scrappy meat from my stockpot would do well ground into breads and cakes.  I may try that later on.  In my family we are about half divided on tolerating coconut flour in large amounts so I it may be a week or two before I get back around to trying that.

Well, perhaps this idea will be useful to you….