Daily*Dishin: Kahlua Baked Acorn Squash

(Printable Recipe)

A little liqueur is a delicious enhancement to the natural sweetness of many a winter squash. These festive looking babies are Carnival Squash, love child of the Sweet Dumpling and the Acorn squash. (Sounds rather carny, I know, I know.) They are beautifully sweet and orange on the inside and make a lovely side dish to replace those overly sweet sweet-potatoes. And prep time is maybe 5 minutes including reaching into the fridge for the butter.

Use your sharpest large knife - let thin and sharp trump size if you only have a medium size chef knife. You may split from stem to stern if you prefer. I like to slice a thin piece from the pointy bottom to make it sit flat in the pan and I also cut off the top like a small lid.

IF you have one of these grapefruit spoons, you'll find it to be the best of tools for scraping out the seeds down to the smooth flesh.

Aluminum foil makes cleanup so much easier, but you still need to spray with a little Pam for non-stick-to-it-tiveness. Place the squash face down with a tablespoon or two of water and bake 30-40 minutes at 350.

Assemble the finishing touch! Melt 1-2 Tbs of butter and choose Kahlua or Amaretto. There's more than enough for half a dozen squashes in one of these tiny "airline" bottles that every liquor store carries these days. (Prefect size for all sorts of desserts and cheap, so it's worth it to stock up on a variety of flavors.)

When the squash is softened and almost cooked through, flip them over with tongs. Brush each with butter first and drizzle in a teaspoon of liqueur. Brush that all around the rim and insides several times.