31 Days of Autumn::Day 1-Butternut Squash

It's 10 pm...I almost missed the first day! I can see this is going to be challenging but I signed up for the challenge, remind me of the will ya. I have been working on a post, actually two since 9:30 this morning. 

Then life happened...

My littlest was supposed to be sleeping and when I went to check on him, I found this

 

He can destroy a room in such a short amount of time.

Here is a "close up" of his toy corner. Craziness!!!

The chair is supposed to be in the kitchen but he carried it into the living room so he could get to his special things.

Alright...onto the real post

Butternut Squash

I used to cut squash in half, scoop the seeds out, then bake. Most of the time it is really hard to cut through the tough skin and it was always a game of keeping it still so it wouldn't roll all over the place. One day the light bulb went off. Why couldn't I bake it before cutting it open - I almost always mash it any way.

First cut a little slit off the widest part of the squash.

Make sure to poke some holes/slits into each side.

Bake at 350 or 300 until soft. I usually stick it in the oven when baking other things to save time & energy.

After it cools, cut it open length wise and scoop out the seeds.

Then scoop out the squash. Sometimes I have been able to cut the squash for bite size pieces
but I baked this one a bit long for that.

I used this in a squash soup recipe that I will be posting soon. This is also how I cooked it when I was making Gunnar's baby food and for dinner side dishes. It really can't get much easier.

What is your favorite way to prepare squash or your favorite squash recipe?