Tuesday, September 22, 2009

This Ain't Ya Momma's Squash




My twin sister Alaine, being jealous of the rave reviews I've been receiving at my parents' house for recent culinary successes, decided to put on her Betty Crocker apron and do the squash tango. :D 

All kidding aside, this is some of the best squash I've ever tasted! Although she reports needing a hacksaw to open the hardheaded veggie, the end results were well worth the effort. (I'm just sorry she didn't have a camera on hand to capture the beautiful finished product!)


Photo by erin.kkr

Alaine's Maple Apple Jack Pecan Squash

1 butternut sqush, stemmed
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 tsp. cinnamon-sugar
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
5 Tbsp. plus 1tsp. Jack Daniel's bourbon
4 Tbsp. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 8 equal pieces
1/2 cup toasted pecans
2 chopped Granny Smith apples

Preheat oven to 375 with rack positioned in center. Cut squash in half lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds---hollow out stem section to hold apples and nuts.

Place squash halves cut side up in a large baking dish with sides at least 1-1/2 inches high. Sprinkle the hollow of each squash half with cinnamon/sugar mixture. Place half of the apples and nuts into squash. Pour 1 Tbsp. maple syrup and 2 tsp. bourbon over each half and top with butter pat. Season to preference. (If not baking immediately, cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours.)

Pour hot water into the pan around the squash halves to a depth of 1 inch (this helps keep the bottoms from burning). Cover the entire dish with aluminum foil. Bake for 45 minutes, or until the flesh can just be pierced with a knife. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 15 to 20 minutes until tender and beginning to brown.

Serve warm. Yum-mmmy!

27 comments:

Analisa said...

Sounds delish!

Regina said...

Wow! That sounds decadent! I have to try it!
;)

Anonymous said...

Angie,

Bourbon, maple syrup, butter and cinnamon sugar could make a whole lot of things taste divine! This looks like a must try recipe. Twin sister? Lucky you. Always wanted a sister!

Sandra Leigh said...

Fall does have its charms, doesn't it? We can start cooking in the oven, with all the deliciousness that that brings with it. Love squash. Love pecans. This sounds wonderful.

Pseudo said...

Sounds yum.

Melissa Amateis said...

Holy cow! That sounds like quite the recipe!

Marguerite said...

I'm all for any recipe with Jack Daniels as an ingredient. Seriously, this looks divine and I will try it! Thanks for sharing, Angie!

Angie Ledbetter said...

Analisa & Red Bird - it really really was divine. Hope you try it!

TTWC, you're right; those ingredients would make a shingle taste good. And, yes, I am blessed.

Sandra - don't you just love the different fresh ingredients the seasons afford?

PHST & Melissa, it's lip smacking goodness on the plate. :D

My pleasure, Marguerite. (Wonder what it'd taste like with merletons?)

Donna M. Kohlstrom said...

My hubby said you need to adjust the recipe to 1/2 to 1 cup of Jack Daniel's. That's for the cook to drink!!! He said everything goes well with Jack Daniel's!!!

Elizabeth Bradley said...

Great fall recipe, I'm a fan of the butternut squash, I use a cleaver to half it! My sister's name is Elaine.

Charles Gramlich said...

This actually makes Squash sound pretty good. I've never had that happen before. :)

Scott said...

YUM! I did acorn squash and spaghetti squash last week.

Oh, and I read if you micro squash for one minute, it makes cutting through the shell much easier. Now, I haven't tried it, but that's what my cookbook said when I was searching for recipes. I normally have to use the serrated knife to hack through the shell.

S

Lori said...

Oh, those things are impossible to cut! This recipe sounds very sweet.

Liz Wilkey (a.k.a. A Mom on Spin) said...

That sounds too good to be true!

Diane said...

How could you go wrong with those ingredients? Sounds yummy! :O)

Anonymous said...

Squash and a cold cereal. Who knew. Sounds great
Oren

Stacy Post said...

I'm always looking for ways to make vegetables more delectable...fantastic! Thanks for sharing, Angie!

Amie said...

Can I skip the squash and just drink the Jack Daniels?

Anonymous said...

ang,
daddy called. said for you to give me your crisco award plaque from 9th grade. it's mine now.
tell scott i coulda lassoed that baby and
drug it across the prairie without it gettin' a dent. (next time i'm plannin' on sitting it on a stump for target practice before i hit it with the stihl chainsaw.)
glad it was edible. :-O

Dorraine said...

I'm with Amie, although it looks and sounds scrumptious. Thanks for sharing this!

Unknown said...

It's FALL! Yay!

A twin? Fascinating.....

Karen said...

Oooo, sounds wonderful! I do something similar with acorn squash, but have not used bourbon. YUM!!

♥ Braja said...

You tryin' to turn a vegetarian's head? :)
Worked :)

Terri Tiffany said...

Your sister eats like I do:) Yummy sounding!

Angie Ledbetter said...

Donna, you gots one smart hubby. :)

We've got several things in common, Elizabeth...writing, eating, sisters.

LOL Charles. AND CONGRATS ON SPEAKING AT THE LA BOOK FESTIVAL THIS YEAR!

Scott - I'm restoring your tiara for the handy dandy squash-chopping tip. :D

Lori - the tart Granny Smiths and the bit of savory spices balanced the dish out nicely. (Hmm, I sound like a Food Network star.) ha

AMoS, it really was de-vine!

*nodding head at Diane* :D

Angie Ledbetter said...

So....Oren....when ya gonna try the recipe in the ol' Dutch Oven for us?

My pleasure, Stacy. :)

Amie & Dorraine - Absolutely. Have done so myself a few times. hehe

Suzanne - Yeah...helps explain some of my own brand of craziness now, doesn't it?

Thanks, Karen, will have to try it with acorn squash. Was also thinking about merletons. :)

Umm, Braja, I know I'm dumb to the ways of veggie-heads....but what's on the "bad list" for this recipe? :D

TERRI - I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU DIDN'T SAY "EWWWW, YUCK!" like usual. lol

Jessica Nelson said...

I actually have cooked squash, amazingly, and this sounds so much better than what I've made. LOL Thanks for sharing!

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