How to butcher a squash: Meet my friends, Cucurbata Pepo and stab/roast them into a fall salad

These beauties are all cultivars of the botanical species: Cucurbata Pepo. Not pictured are the summer squash like zucchini  pattypan or crookneck, though they are also part of this species of squash. The whole cucurbit family as a genus includes: melons, cucumbers, watermelons, gourds, summer and winter squash. These winter squash pictured are all the "oddball" types. With the other winter squash family, "Cucurbata moschata" one method will work with all of them. Here, you must first know which cultivar you are dealing with before you decide where and how it will end up in your meal. 

This one might seem familiar to most people.  We're comfortable stabbing it in the face decoratively and letting it rot on our porch for awhile, but eating it might be new. The best way to break the pumpkin down for cooking is to first find where it likes to sit flat. Sometimes that is this way pictured, and sometimes it is on it's ground spot (where it sat on the ground and is differently colored and slightly flattened). Take a large, heavy chef's knife and stab it in the face, careful of your hands. Once the initial cut is made, tip the pumpkin and continue the cut with the knife longitudinally so you have two mirrored halves. The stem will give you trouble, do your best. Scoop the seeds, and clean and save for roasting! Roast your halved fruit with a bit of oil on a cookie sheet, cut side up on 350* until a knife slides easily though. Let cool out of the oven and scoop out flesh for puree or use a melon baller for putting in salads. You can also stuff these guys and leave the flesh in like a pumpkin bowl, or scoop the flesh out mix in stuffing, and serve in the half. 

This member of C. Pepo is a spaghetti squash. Aptly named for its stringy nature. Like with the pumpkin above, we need to halve it to get to the good stuff. This one is tricky though, as it really doesn't lay flat. A large, heavy knife is your best friend here. Lay it parallel with the knife so you're going to cut it in half the long way, remove all hands, children and pets from the danger zone, and WHACK! I find aiming to use the heavier butt of the knife gives me more umph. Once you have an initial cut, you should be able to finish the job a bit safer. Again, the stem will give you trouble. Gently clean out the seeds (you may eat them) and roast at 350* until tender. When ready, remove and let cool slightly. Take a fork and rake lengthwise to liberate the squash "noodles". People like to eat this like spaghetti with red sauce, but I think a garlic parmesan treatment serves the squashes flavor better. 

This C. Pepo member is an Acorn Squash. It has a thick, firm flesh that is good eating, but not great puree-ing. I love to stuff this one with meaty-bready stuff, topped with cheese and nuts. Though you can scoop out bits with a melon baller once cooked and add to a grain salad, green salad, soup, etc. The breakdown is similar to spaghetti. It probably won't sit very still or flat, so a hands-free WHACK is your best bet. It roasts up the same. 

These two have got to be the most user-friendly, last minute dinner addition, cutest members of C. Pepo.  Pictured here are (left to right) a sweet dumpling and delicata squash. They are thin skinned, thin fleshed beauties that are delicious and simple to use. WHACK them in half, scoop seeds and roast. OR, if you're super in a hurry, stab 6ish times in the face and pop into the microwave following your machines instructions for hard vegetables (likely potato button). These guys also have really thin skin that can be eaten! I love to roast delicata and slice into a salad with peppery, bitter lettuces. 

The recipe below would be wonderful with either the delicata, dumpling, acorn, or pie pumpkin. The spaghetti squash might be too grainy and not sweet enough, but if you really want to- go try it out!

C. Pepo Fall Salad

1lb squash- roasted and sliced or melon balled
1 bunch kale- massaged
1 pomegranate- de-seeded
2 apples- cored and sliced
2  lemons- juiced
1/2 C maple syrup
Olive oil
Pistachios or hazelnuts- toasted

Prep all veggies and fruit- add to bowl. Mix lemon juice, maple syrup, and oil in a separate bowl- salt to taste. Add to salad with toasted nuts and enjoy!

Variations to fill out for a meal:
-Add garbanzos
-Add a whole grain
-Add sprouts
-Add peppery greens like arugula or cress
-Add feta, blue cheese, hard salty cheese, or havarti