20 January 2020
Recipe from Cook's Illustrated, November 2018.
I had never heard of delicata squash until seeing this recipe in Cook's Illustrated about a year ago. It looked very simple to prepare and worth trying, especially as I try to up my side-dish game. However, I wasn't able to find it in the store until this season. I finally got to try this recipe this winter to find out if it is a worthy addition to our regular winter menu.
An attractive trait of these squash is their tender skin which does not need to be removed before cooking. The recipe was for three squashes but I used just one. The ends were trimmed, the squash was halved lengthwise, the seeds were removed, and the halves sliced crosswise into ½-inch thick pieces. These were tossed with oil and salt and arranged on a baking sheet which was covered with aluminum foil. After roasting at 425° for about 20 minutes the foil was removed and the squash roasted until it was golden brown. The squash slices were then flipped, butter was added to the sheet, and roasting continued until the second side of the squash was also browned. Total time was only 40 minutes.
The delicata squash lived up to its name. It was very attractive with the striped, gently grooved skin. The flesh had a very delicate flavor, especially when comparing it to butternut squash which we had eaten recently. The skin, however, was very crunchy. While this sort of textural contrast is usually positive, in this case it detracted from the dish. With the crunchy skin, very mild flavor, and thin layer of flesh, we weren't big fans so probably won't have this again.
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