Acorn Squash Soup

Ingredients

• 1 small onion
• 1/4 cup chopped celery
• 2 tablespoons butter or margarine
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon granules
• 1/2 teaspoon dill weed
• 1/4 teaspoon curry powder
• dash cayenne pepper
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 (12 ounce) can evaporated milk
• 3 cups mashed cooked acorn squash
• salt and pepper to taste
• 5 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled

Directions

1. In a large saucepan, saute the onion and celery in butter. Stir in flour, bouillon, dill, curry and cayenne until blended. Gradually add broth and milk. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes. Add the squash, salt and pepper; heat through.
2. In a blender, process the soup in batches until smooth. Pour into bowls; garnish with bacon.

Acorn Squash Slices

Ingredients

• 2 medium acorn squash
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
• 1/3 cup chopped pecans

Directions

1. Wash squash. Cut in half lengthwise; discard seeds and membrane. Cut each half crosswise into 1/2-in. slices; discard the ends. Place slices in a greased 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in. baking dish. Sprinkle with salt. Combine syrup and butter; pour over squash. Sprinkle with pecans if desired. Cover and bake at 350 degrees F for 40-45 minutes or until tender.

Acorn Squash Gnocchi with Parmesan Sage Beurre Blanc

Ingredients

• 1 acorn squash, halved and seeded
• 2 cloves garlic, pressed
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 cup white flour
• 7 cups water
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1 cube chicken bouillon
• 1 cup beer
• 1/3 teaspoon rubbed sage
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Use a knife to perforate the acorn squash with several slits. Cook in microwave for 10 minutes. Scrape the flesh into a bowl. Stir in the garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt, egg, and whole wheat flour. Add the white flour in small amounts and mix until you get a sticky dough with a manageable texture. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and roll into thin ropes. Slice the dough into quarter-sized gnocchi.
2. Bring the water with 1 tablespoon salt to a boil in a large pot; add the gnocchi to the boiling water one at a time, until they are all floating at the top; remove with a slotted spoon to a large bowl; set aside.
3. Discard all but 1 1/2 cups of the water from the pot and return to heat; add the bouillon cube, beer, sage, and pepper and bring to a boil; continue to boil until the mixture reduces to about half its original volume, about 15 minutes; reduce heat to medium. Whisk the butter cubes into the mixture, one at a time, until they are all melted into the liquid; immediately return the gnocchi to the mixture, turn off the heat, and stir in the Parmesan cheese. Cover the pot and allow to sit for 10 minutes before serving.

Acorn Squash Butter

Ingredients

• 3 acorn squash, halved and seeded
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 1/4 cups brown sugar
• 1 (12 fluid ounce) can frozen apple juice concentrate, thawed

Directions

1. Preheat an oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2. Fill two 9x13-inch baking dishes with 1-inch of water each. Place three acorn squash halves cut-side-down into each baking dish. Bake in the preheated oven until the squash is very tender and the skin begins to separate from the meat, about 1 hour. Remove, discard the water, and set aside until cool enough to handle.
3. Scoop the acorn squash flesh from the skins and into a blender. Add the cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves. Puree until thick and smooth. Scrape the squash into a heavy-bottom pot, and stir in the brown sugar and apple juice concentrate. Cook and stir over medium-low heat until thickened, 40 to 45 minutes. Cool completely before packing into freezer-safe containers. Store in the freezer up to 6 months.

Acorn Squash

Ingredients

• 1 medium acorn squash, halved and seeded
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Turn acorn squash upside down onto a cookie sheet. Bake in a 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) oven until it begins to soften, approximately 30 to 45 minutes.
3. Remove squash from the oven and turn onto a plate so that the flesh is facing upwards. Place butter and brown sugar into the squash, and place remaining squash over the other piece. Place squash in a baking dish (so the squash wont slide around too much) while baking.
4. Place squash in the 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) oven and bake another 30 minutes.

Acorn Magic Delights

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter, melted
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 1/2 cups finely chopped pecans
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
2. In a large bowl, beat together butter, brown sugar, 3/4 cup chopped pecans, and vanilla until well blended. Combine flour and baking powder, and stir into the butter mixture. Shape dough into 1 inch balls, and place onto ungreased cookie sheets. Flatten cookies slightly to keep them from rolling off of the pan, and pinch the tops to a point to resemble acorns.
3. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven, or until firm. Remove from cookie sheet to cool on wire racks.
4. In the top of a double boiler, melt chocolate chips, stirring frequently until smooth. Remove from heat; keep chocolate warm over water in the double boiler. Dip pointy ends of cooled cookies into melted chocolate, then into the remaining 3/4 cup chopped pecans. Allow cookies to set on waxed paper.

Acorn Cookies

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup ground pecans

Directions

1. In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Beat in the egg, milk and extract. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture. Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours or until easy to handle.
2. Divide the dough in half. On a lightly floured surface, roll out each portion to 1/4-in. thickness. Cut with 2-1/2-in. acorn cookie cutter. Place 1 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 375 degrees F for 8-10 minutes or until edges are firm. Remove to wire racks to cool completely.
3. In a microwave-safe bowl, melt the chocolate chips; stir them until smooth. Spread chocolate over the stem and cap of each acorn, leaving about a 1/4-in. border. Sprinkle pecans over chocolate. Pipe remaining chocolate in a criss-cross pattern over each acorn. Let stand until firm.