Butternut Squash and Acorn Squash are two of my favorite kinds of winter squash. Their sweet, red-orange flesh is packed with nutrients, they are quite low in calories, and simple to fix. One cup of cooked cubes is only 80 calories.
Winter squash contains, among other nutrients:
Vitamin A (beta carotene) – antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, prevents oxidation of cholesterol, helps prevent atherosclerosis, reduces risk of colon cancer
Vitamin C – reduces severity of conditions in asthma, osteoarthritis, diabetic heart disease
Potassium – lowers blood pressure
Dietary fiber – fights heart disease and cancer, protects the cells of the colon
Folate – prevents certain birth defects, breaks down homocysteine (so it reduces heart attack and stroke), prevents cancer in colon cells
Omega 3 fatty acids – reduces inflammation in the body, regulates blood clotting, promotes healthy cell membranes, lowers cholesterol and triglycerides, inhibits thickening of arteries as well as helps them dilate, stimulates secretion of leptin (reduces cravings for sweets, simple carbs as well as regulates body weight and metabolism), helps prevent cancer cell growth.
Other nutrients include: manganese, B1, copper, B6, niacin-B3, pantothenic acid
It’s also rich in beta-cryptoxanthin an orange red carotenoid that may inhibit lung cancer.
RECIPE, WINTER SQUASH
If you don’t have a lot of time, here’s how to fix winter squash:
Set oven to 375 – 400 degrees. Halve or quarter the squash, scrape out the seeds and strings in the center.
Spray or lightly coat with olive oil, sprinkle cinnamon, a little nutmeg, a little salt. Add a sweetener if you like. (I have a spice jar with a plastic top on it for sprinkling and I combine cinnamon and stevia and shake it on the squash –this makes it sweeter yet adds no calories.) Another sweetener to use is agave nectar. You will need to coat the squash with this, or if cooking halves put in the "seed well.")
Put in a shallow pan or baking dish that has been coated with oil, add a little water ( ¼ – ½ inch). Bake for 45 min – 1 hour, if cut into halves. (Smaller pieces take less time to cook -- 25 to 30min. -- so if you’re in a hurry, cut the squash into smaller slices.) Some prefer to bake it for the first half of the baking time with the cut side down, placing it cut side up the second half of the baking time. Test with a fork; if it easily pierces the flesh, it's done.
Once baked, the squash can be eaten as is, or mashed and served as a puree, like mashed potatoes.
(If you’re in a real hurry, and you don’t mind using a microwave, it cooks in about 10-14 min. in a microwave – microwave safe dish with some water added.)
