Baked Brown Sugar Squash

I went to the grocers the other day and they were having an amazing sale on acorn squash. I ended up buying as many as I could carry and, while at the time, this sounded like a great idea, being surrounded by squash really isn't as ideal as it sounded at the time. For one, I've never made a squash a centerpiece of a meal and, for two, I wasn't even sure of how to cook a squash without mixing it into a bunch of other veggies. 

 

After a little experimentation, it turned out the more simply I kept things, the better the result. First, I preheated the oven to 450 degrees and put a bit of EVOO into the bottom of a small pan (4x6 is what I used). The oil will keep the skin and "meat" soft, which is essential if you plan on keeping a luscious, creamy texture.Cook the squash for about 40 minutes.

Once the 40 minutes is up, take the squash out of the oven, remove the seeds with a spoon, and spread about one teaspoon of butter or butter substitute over the squash. Next, sprinkle a pinch or two of brown sugar (I use all natural raw cane dark brown sugar) over the flesh. Place the squash back into the oven without turning it back on. The brown sugar and butter will caramelize over the top of the squash.

After a few minutes, you may remove the squash and serve either in its skin or you may remove the flesh and serve as is. I served it still in it's skin, as seen above. The brown sugar really brings out the sweetness of the squash and the butter plays into the smooth texture quite well. I was asked for the recipe quite a few times! Next time, for the sake of presentation, I will be plating the latter way and serving more as a mashed squash.