Clockwise from top left: Casper Pumpkin, Ambercup, Acorn Squash, Carnival Pumpkin, Baby Boo Pumpkin, Mini Sugar Pie, Sweet Dumpling Pumpkin. Center: Sugar Pie Pumpkin

hh, the glorious Pumpkin. Orange and splendid, it holds the promise of Fall, holidays, and yummy treats. But exactly how much do you know about Sir Jack-o-Lantern, and his relatives? Beyond being the great diplomat for Halloween and Thanksgiving, he and his kin make great and healthy dishes you can enjoy throughout winter.
Take a tasty tour of the gourd family and find out everything you need to know to create a festive fall feast.

Squash and pumpkins actually all belong in the gourd family, known in Latin as Cucurbita, and are generally categorized into two “types”: summer, or winter squash. Although they are a fruit,they are widely regarded as vegetables, and are treated as such in most culinary dishes. They are very versatile, with many being sweet, and are a good source of Beta-carotenes.
So which winter squash should you be cooking? Here is a small overview of the many types:

Acorn - As its name suggests, this winter squash is shaped like an acorn. A favorite baking squash, it weighs from 1 to 3 pounds, and has sweet, slightly fibrous flesh. It has a well ribbed outer shell, and comes in colors of dark green, white, golden, and mottled variations of these colors.
Uses: wonderful baking squash, eaten with butter and seasoning, stuffed with rice, veggies, etc. It can also be eaten mashed or boiled with other vegetables.

Ambercup - A relative of the buttercup squash with an orange exterior, which makes it appear like a small pumkin. Lightly ribbed exterior with a mildly sweet taste.
Uses: boiled, mashed, stewed, stuffed, steamed.

Baby Boo
Bright white miniature, ~3" pumpkin with deep ribs. Has a tendency to turn yellow in bright sunlight. Cutely named, it might make the perfect decor for the Halloween season. Like many of the miniature varieties it keeps extremely well.
Uses: Not edible but very attractive for decoration.

Banana - An oblong squash with soft beige to bright yellowish exterior, it’s appearance is reminiscent of a banana. Its bright orange, finely-textured flesh is sweet.
Uses: Good baking squash.

Buttercup - Buttercup Squash are part of the Turban squash family (hard shells with turban-like shapes) and are a popular variety of winter squash. The meat is sweet and creamy, so much so that they may be used for baking sweets, as well as amongst other veggies.
Uses: baking pies, baked, mashed, steamed, and you can stuff them.

Casper
Brilliant white skin. More round than squat and with only slight ribbing. Sweet flesh is excellent for pies and baking. More suited to painting than carving.
Uses: Casper is used more as decor because of it's stark white coloring.

Carnival Squash - Cream colored with orange spots or pale green with dark green spots in vertical stripes, the pattern is sometimes divided, or mottled.- golden flesh. The exterior skin of carnival squash is usually hard and inedible, so only the flesh can be eaten. It's flavor is not unlike butternut squash or yam.
Uses: Carnival squash can be steamed, or baked whole, and the skins removed. Eat plain, seasoned, or mashed. It's unique shell markings make it a wonderful alternative to fall home decor

Delicata - This heirloom squash has a creamy pulp, and tastes very much like sweet potatoes. It is a long squash with distinctive yellow and green stripes down its length
Uses: Works well baked, steamed, baked, or sauteed.

Fairytail Pumpkin:French name is "Musquee de Provence," and it is also known as the "Cinderella Pumpkin". The fruits are flattened like a cheese but the "ribbing" is extremely deep. It is marked, also, by a deep reddish color to it's shell.
Uses: This pumpkin is usually used for baking. Cut it into pieces and bake in the oven. It's sweet, tender flesh makes it perfect to eat unadorned. It also works well in pies. It's reddish coloring makes it an excellent decor pumpkin.

Sweet Dumpling: This pumpkin is very similar to to the Carnival Pumpkin, but is "taller," whereas the Canival is wide, and has a "pushed in," dumpling shaped top. They have a sweet orange meat and are good for baking.
Uses: Baking and roasting whole, stuffed.

Sugar Pie: This medium sized pumpkin ranges from 2 to 8 pounds, with a light orange skin. So named because of its sweet flesh, it makes for a good baking pie. It's meat is orange and somewhat sweet.
Uses: baking pies, good decor pumpkin.

Spaghetti: A small, watermelon-shaped variety, ranges in size from 2 to 5 pounds or more. It has a golden-yellow, oval rind and a mild, nutlike flavor. When cooked, the flesh separates in strands that resemble spaghetti pasta. The yellowiest Spaghetti squash will be the ripest and best to eat. Those that are nearly white are not very ripe.
Uses: Can be used in the place of pasta. Cooking and sauteeing would be the best culinary choices for this squash.

BASIC PUMPKIN BAKE (this works well with squash, too!):

1. Take a medium sized baking pumpkin, probably best found at your local farmer's market, or organic food market (we like the Fairy Tale Pumpkin the best), and wash the outside rind.

2. Cut pumpkin into manageable pieces (into fourths, or eighths, depending on how large the pumpkin is).

3. Spice lightly, if you'd like. Add any of the following ingredients (or combination of ingredients), to suit your taste: butter, cinnamon, ginger powder, brown sugar, salt, clove. Or, leave it plain; it's sweetness comes out during baking.

4. Place into a deep baking dish.

5. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Place pumkin, insides facing upward, into the dish. Cook for roughly an hour, turning the pan per the half hour.

6. Remove from oven when the tops become goldenish- or if a fork stick shows that the meet is tender.

7. You may now use this for other dishes, or eat when cool!

ANOTHER RECIPE:

TASTY CURRIED SQUASH PUMPKIN SOUP.
* 2 acorn squash, pumpkins, or other smallish winter squash, or a combination of the two.
* 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
* 1 14-ounce can coconut milk
* Water
* 2 teaspoon of your choice curry - Indian (I like the hotter Masala, but you can opt for the more mild, generic curry--I would use up to 3 teaspoons, there), or Thai (the green is mild the red is VERY hot, and I would limit it to no more than 2 teaspoons).
* 2 teaspoons fine grain sea salt (or to taste)

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and place the oven racks in the middle.

2. Carefully cut each squash/pumpkin into halves (or quarters). Slather each piece of squash with butter, sprinkle generously with salt, place on a baking sheet skin sides down, and place in the oven. Roast for about an hour or until the squash is tender throughout.

3. When the pumpkin/squash are cool enough to handle scoop it into a large pot over medium high heat.

4. Add the coconut milk andcurry paste and bring to a simmer.

5.Remove from the heat and puree with a hand blender, you should have a very thick base at this point.


6. Now add water a cup at a time pureeing between additions until the soup is the consistency you prefer (you can also use vegetable stock, instead of water, if you'd like).





Bring up to a simmer again and add the salt (and more curry paste if you like.
Enjoy!