Butternut Squash
Understanding Veg
If you love a sweet nutty flavour then stop the bus, it is time to get off. Meet Butternut Squash. They look like stretched versions of their cousin, pumpkins, and make a great alternative to potatoes.
Butternut squash contains antioxidants including beta-carotene which gives it such a vibrant orange colour. It also contains phytonutrients which have been linked with eye health.
First: Peel the skin, cut open, scoop out the seeds and then cut into 3cm chunks. You can then either coat in a little olive oil, salt, pepper, maybe some garlic and roast in a tin in an oven pre-heated to 200C/180C fan/Gas 6 for 25-30 mins, or boil ‘em up until soft, and mash them just like spuds with a little butter, pepper and salt.
Butternut squash is easy to store – just leave it in a cool dark cupboard or even on the counter when whole and unpeeled where it will last for months! Once peeled and/or cut, keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days. To freeze, just peel and chop into cubes, then spread the cubed squash out on a tray and freeze for a few hours before popping into a freezer bag or container for up to 6 months.
To prep butternut squash, use a vegetable peeler to peel off the skin, cut off the ‘lid’ and the base, then cut in half to get a smaller top section and large bottom one. Halve them lengthways and scoop the seeds out from the bottom half (don’t chuck them – remove all the squash bits, rinse and pat dry, then toss in a little oil and salt and roast for 10 mins for a wasteless snack!). You can then cut the squash into chunks. Alternatively, you can leave the skin on to bake/roast it, and even scoop out the seeds after baking/roasting halved if you like.
Nutrition
Butternut squash contains antioxidants including beta-carotene which gives it such a vibrant orange colour just like our beloved carrots. It also contains phytonutrients which similar to beta-carotene supports eye health.
Shopping Guide
Butternuts should always feel substantial for their size and the skill should feel firm without any wrinkling or soft spots.
Storage
Butternut squash is easy to store – just leave it whole in a cool dark cupboard for months. Once peeled and/or cut, keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days. To freeze, just peel and chop into cubes, then spread the cubed squash out on a tray and freeze for a few hours before popping into a freezer bag or container for up to 6 months.
Serving Suggestion
Peel the skin, cut open, scoop out the seeds and then cut into 3cm chunks. You can then either coat in a little olive oil, salt, pepper, maybe some garlic and roast in a tin in an oven pre-heated to 200C/180C fan/Gas 6 for 25-30 mins, or boil until soft, and mash with a knob of butter and some black pepper.
At Its Best:
September - November
Engage
Here are some of our favourite ways to engage kids with butternut squash:
Arts & Crafts
Start simple with some non-food based engagement. This is especially helpful for a fussier child or those with sensitivities around food. For butternut squash, why not try our Eat Them To Defeat Them colouring sheet? Can they spot the squash at the back?
Science
Science allows for curiosity, play and hands-on experiments. It helps kids to become fascinated with veg – how it looks, reacts, smells, cooks and more. Finding fun and simple experiments to allow kids to play with their veg makes them curious about it and helps them approach it in a positive way.
Have fun with the seeds from your butternut squash by dropping one into a glass of fizzy water, and watch it rise up and sink down again and again until the bubbles run out – the carbon dioxide bubbles bring the seed up to the top!
Sensory
Sensory exploration can be a wonderful introduction to physically interacting with veg. Turn it into a positive, pressure-free experience by starting off with the golden rules of “You don’t need to try and you don’t need to like.” Reassuring a child that, while they have a chance to taste a veg, they don’t have to, and are not expected to like it if they do, can make them more happy to engage with it.
Explore what a whole and halved squash look and feel like. What can you see? Encourage your child to use their imagination and descriptive language. Try feeling the difference between the inside and outside of the squash with your hands, and how does it make your hands feel after touching the inside? Try touching the seeds and seeing what they remind you of. Better yet, try exploring the difference in feel between a half that is raw and a half that is cooked – what are the differences and similarities? What do they remind you of? Have fun with it and see if they would like to try a little piece of the cooked one with you afterwards.
Kids in the Kitchen
Children who help to prep and cook veg are more likely to eat it. If you feel your child is ready to help and could benefit from it, keep the stress and mess to a minimum by choosing one simple task for them to do as part of the prep, meaning they can be involved and feel like the recipe is in part ‘theirs’, but also not make the process too much longer or more complicated.
For a younger child, why not give them the job of scooping the seeds and stringy bits out of a halved, cooked squash. If you aren’t keeping the squash in halves to stuff but are just using the flesh in something else, let them scoop all of that out with a spoon into a bowl, too!
For an older child, it could be a great opportunity to teach them how to make a simple soup by mixing frozen squash cubes and water or stock or coconut milk (and perhaps a little cumin or curry powder?) in a pan and stirring until cooked, piping hot and soft. You can then help them safely blend it and see if, when they taste it, they think it needs any other flavours added.
Use our Kitchen Ninja chart and videos to find simple ways for kids to help in the kitchen.
Your Food
Find your go-to meals in our family favourites section and see what veggies work best with them.
Find out how to add more veg to your suppers here.
If You Like…Try
Does your child enjoy butternut squash? That’s great! Butternut squash is sweet and soft, so why not try a similar texture and/or taste…
Serving
The moments before food is offered can be a perfect opportunity for engagement that can help make it more likely a child will eat it!
The first thing to do is remove the pressure. If the veg doesn’t get eaten, it’s not the end of the world. There will be other days, other dinners, other chances. Fun is key here – try not to worry about mess, perfect table manners, or playing with food. Instead, focus on making the process of getting the food to the plates, readying the table, and the actual eating relaxed.
The best principles for success here are the Three Rs (role modelling, rewarding, re-offering) which you can read about here.
But there is one more way you can serve for success, and that is giving your child a role. You don’t have to do this every time, just encourage them in their strengths through it when you can.
Here are some of our favourite ideas:
Design a menu
Come up with a silly name or story for a dish
Help with making a meal plan and choosing veg for dinners or snacks
Help to serve up the meal on dishes, lay the table or create a centrepiece to be involved in the physical ‘serving up’ process
The Wonderful World of Veg
Check out our vegepedia. When to buy in-season. How to store them to keep for longer. How to engage children with each veg, and simple ideas of how to prepare and cook them for maximum taste and minimum waste. Select a veg…