Getting your kids to eat: Squash

Editor's note: This is part of an occasional series of stories on children eating vegetables. The series explores ways to highlight vegetables' flavor and appearance as a way to work around the resistance some kids have to eating vegetables.


We eat with our eyes first.

If foods don't look delicious, we assume they won't be delicious.

That's one of the concepts underlying The Herald-Mail's series on encouraging children to try eating seasonal vegetables.

One way to get a kid to try a new food is to make it look tasty.

This month's vegetable is the whole family of winter squashes, including acorn, butternut and hubbard squashes. They are in the same family as the pumpkin. Like pumpkins, winter squash skins are typically tough and they have bright yellow or orange flesh.

Chunks of cooked squash sitting on a plate might not be appealing to a child. But take a different approach, said Jeff Proulx, supervisor of food and nutrition services for Washington County Public Schools.

"I've got two elementary-age children. They've responded to winter squash by turning their nose up to it," Proulx said. "But then they tried it."

Winter squashes are unique in that they can be served savory or sweet, Proulx said. He has a favorite way to serve winter squash to his kids — whipped, like potatoes.

"One of the most common ways is to boil or steam it, then whip it," he said. "As an accompaniment to a white meat or turkey, sweeter might be better. Add a little brown sugar or cinnamon."

Or make squash into a savory dish, Proulx said. That might go well as a side for red meat or lamb.  

"I actually prefer to roast a squash," he said. "Peel and cube and toss it with olive oil. Bake at 375 to 400 degrees for about 40 minutes. Then whip it with garlic, rosemary, a little cracked pepper."

Of course, winter squashes are packed with nutrients. They are a great source of vitamin A, thiamin, vitamin B6 and magnesium, and a very good source of dietary fiber, vitamin C, potassium and manganese. On top of that, squashes contain virtually no fat, sodium or cholesterol.

Squash's firm flesh and flexible flavor profile can work to a home cook's advantage. Pureed squash can be added to many foods, Proulx said.

"With a squash, you're talking about the same category as a pumpkin. You could make breads with squash," he said. "Also, there are a couple of niche dairies in the area that make pumpkin ice cream. I would suspect you'd do the same application with squash as with pumpkin."

Pureed squash can replace pumpkin in a pie. It can replace carrots in carrot cake, or it can replace zucchini in zucchini bread. Combine pureed squash and pureed pear as a base for a sweet, spiced soup. Mix chopped tart apples and pureed squash in a dessert crisp.

On the savory side, Proulx suggested try adding pureed squash to spaghetti sauce. It's a concept he got from Jessica Seinfeld's books about hiding vegetables in kids' food.

"We really want kids to know the food in its raw state," Proulx said. "The USDA struggles with that. Do we want to hide (a vegetable) in something else? Or do we want it to be right out front?"

It's the opposite of encouraging kids to eat with their eyes, but if kids simply refuse to eat vegetables, what can a parent do?


Fortunately, winter squashes have that colorful eye appeal. And they work with kids' preference for sweet foods.

"They say a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down," Proulx said. "Add a little brown sugar to your squash.

These three recipes use acorn or butternut squash. The muffin recipe hides the squash; the other two make squash tasty and visually appealing. My sister, Martha, said her squash-and-sausage recipe has been a kid favorite.



Mashed butternut squash

1 medium acorn or butternut squash; need 4 cups of flesh

2 tablespoons butter

1/3 cup cream

1/2 teaspoon fresh rosemary

Salt and pepper to taste



Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cut squash in half and remove seeds. Bake open side up on a cookie sheet for 40 minutes or until fork tender.

Or, if raw squash is difficult to cut in half, pierce squash skin in several places and bake whole for 40 minutes or until tender. Don't turn off oven. Cut squash in half and remove seeds and pulp.

Using a spoon, scoop out 4 cups the flesh and place into a food processor. Add butter and cream and blend on low until smooth. Add rosemary, salt and pepper to taste. Remove mixture from processor and place in oven proof dish. Return to oven for 10 minutes or until heated through.

Serves 4.

— Adapted by Yolanda DiFabio from a recipe at www.marksdailyapple.com



Mixed-up Morning Muffins


2 cups all-purpose flour (see cook's note)

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

2 teaspoons ground nutmeg

1 teaspoons ground cardamom

1/2 teaspoon salt

8-ounce can crushed pineapple with juice

8 strips bacon, fried and chopped fine, optional

2 medium apples, peeled, cored, and chopped (see cook's note)

1/2 cup nuts

1 1/4 cups packed brown sugar

1 cup cooked, mashed acorn or butternut squash

2/3 cup vegetable oil

3 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla


Heat oven to 375 degrees.

Line 18 regular-size muffin cups with paper muffin liners, or grease muffin tin with shortening.

In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom and salt. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine pineapple and juice, bacon, apples and nuts.

Place brown sugar, squash, bacon, oil, eggs and vanilla in food processor and blend until smooth. Add to pineapple mixture.

Add pineapple mixture to flour mixture; stir just until moistened.

Spoon batter into prepared muffin tin or cups.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean. Cool in muffin cups on wire rack for 5 minutes. Remove from muffin cups; serve warm.

Makes 18 muffins.

Cook's notes: Recipe could be prepared with the equal amount of all-purpose, gluten-free flour or whole-wheat flour. Use crisp, tart apples for this recipe, such as Golden Delicious or Granny Smith.

— Adapted by Chris Copley from a recipe at www.parents.com.



My Sister Martha's Squash Bake

1 acorn or butternut squash

1 pound sausage

1/2 cup brown sugar


Heat oven to 375.

Cut squash in half and bake open side up on a cookie sheet for 30 minutes. Or, if raw squash is difficult to cut in half, pierce squash skin in several places and bake whole for 40 minutes. Then cut in half. Remove seeds and pulp from center of squash, and trim off bottom and top so each half sits flat.

While squash is baking, brown sausage in frying pan. When cooked, add brown sugar and stir.

Divide sausage mixture between two squash halves. Return squash to oven and bake for 30 minutes or until fork tender.

Cook's note: If desired, add spices such as salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes or pumpkin pie spice to the sausage. Or, for more mature diners, serve with sauteed onions.

— Courtesy of Martha Furbush of Mt. Victory, Ohio