Caramelized Acorn Squash Recipe: Oven Roasted Goodness (2024)

FAQs

What are the health benefits of roasted acorn squash? ›

This squash has a lot of antioxidants, which can boost your immunity and help your body to fight off certain diseases. Acorn squash contains antioxidants like vitamin C that help strengthen bones and blood vessels. It also has vitamin A, which helps improve the health of your lungs, heart and other vital organs.

Good news: you don't need to peel acorn squash. Its hard, grooved skin softens significantly as it cooks, and it's edible, too. If you do want to remove the skin, wait until after you cook it, at which point it will peel right off.

Place 1/2 tablespoon butter and ½ tablespoon maple syrup in the cavity of each squash. Brush the cut sides with olive oil and sprinkle the squash with 3 teaspoons kosher salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Roast for 40-60 minutes, depending on the size of the squash, until tender when pierced with a small knife.

The one-size-fits-all method for cooking acorn and other hardy squashes is to roast them whole. You can avoid the precarious task of cutting them when they're raw, and the flesh steams to tenderize without drying out while the skin softens enough to eat.

Acorn squash has more carotenoids than any other food. Carotenoids are a powerful antioxidant that help fight inflammation and prevent cell damage.

Try Other Winter Squashes

For example: Acorn squash: It has less vitamin A than butternut but provides even more fiber (9 grams per cup) and potassium (896 mg). Pumpkin: This squash has beta carotene and also contains more than twice as much alpha carotene as butternut squash.

Next time you roast a squash like acorn, butternut or honeynut, try leaving the skins on and give them a nibble. Be sure to scrub the skin well, Joyce recommends, to remove any dirt or debris. The pleasantly chewy texture may just surprise you, plus you can never go wrong with more fiber.

For instance, you can add roasted squash to a fall salad, cook it alongside chicken, or serve it up with bacon and eggs. Of course, one of the most popular ways to serve acorn squash is to stuff it. The edible bowls act as a vessel for anything from mac and cheese to sausage to taco fillings.

Cube squash (or cut it into thin planks) and toss with a bit of cream and salt. Spread in an even layer in a casserole dish. Bake, tightly covered, for about 30 minutes at 400°F.

Do not wash squash before storing. Keep squash away from raw meat and meat juices to prevent cross-contamination. Store whole winter squash in a cool (45 to 50 degrees F) place. If stored properly, most varieties will keep up to 3 months.

Is it OK to eat raw acorn squash? ›

Skip eating most hard-skinned squash raw. "Hard skinned squash is difficult to eat raw," Marz says. "They are usually much larger in size, have a harder flesh, and are much more fibrous." Examples of hard-skinned squash that should not be eaten raw include: pumpkins, delicate, butternut, Hubbard, and acorn.

A one-cup (205-gram) serving of cooked butternut squash provides more than 450% of the RDI for vitamin A and over 50% of the RDI for vitamin C ( 1 ). It's also rich in carotenoids — including beta-carotene, beta-cryptoxanthin, and alpha-carotene — which are plant pigments that give butternut squash its bright color.

Butternut Squash

Its orange flesh has a sweet and nutty flavor and is packed with fiber, vitamins, minerals, and protective plant compounds. In addition to vitamins A and C, butternut squash is also rich in carotenoid plant pigments and minerals like potassium, magnesium, and manganese.

Acorn squash is packed with both soluble and insoluble fiber. Though they have different functions in your body, both play important roles in digestive health. Insoluble fiber adds bulk to your stools while soluble fiber softens them, preventing constipation and supporting regular bowel movements ( 13 ).