I just finished steaming another plump butternut after the zen ritual of peeling it and tossing the seeds for squirrels and Janet's hens. I only put a quarter inch of water and some sea salt in the kettle, put the lid on and wait for the steam to do its work.
When it has a nice consistency like slightly thick batter, I whisk things in like Parmesan, although any number of other cheeses from manchego to feta will work as well, some Bells seasoning, butter, sour cream, pimenton la vera, white pepper and Old Bay seasoning. Whee! Blue Hubbard is another squash variety that would work well. Those smaller acorn squash things work better cut in half and baked with say, honey, butter and cinnamon or nutmeg.
When I was a kid growing up in Reading MA, my ancient great grandmother and I would grow blue hubbards and lay them in a cardboard box in the basement, a natural root cellar and damn if they didn't stay in good shape until Easter. We were doing a form of permaculture then, we just didn't know it.
I realized it is just an elaborate euphemism for working with the given. Squash growing is an old New England thing. I have a feeling it will be a core crop here as the region finds its sustainable way.
