#170: Organics For You - American Askutasquash

September 12, 2008

Contents


  1. September is Food Desert Awareness Month
  2. Pairing with Pears
  3. American Askutasquash
    4. September is Food Desert Awareness Month
    Food Desert RallyGoodness Greeness has been working with the National Center for Public Research to help call attention to the problem of Food Deserts--neighborhoods with no or distant grocery stores and easier access to fast food than healthy food. Residents of these neighborhoods have been documented to suffer disproportionately from diet-related illnesses. To find out more about Food Deserts--Chicago has half a million residents living in Food Desert areas--check out Mari Gallagher's recent article in the Huffington Post:

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mari-gallagher/brother-can-you-spare-an_b_124762.html
    Pairing with Pears
    Organic Bartlett PearPears are one of the sweetest pleasures of the fall season, and harvest time for pears is in full swing! Aromatic sweet Bartlett Pears should be just right—ripe or nearly ripe—if you want to eat them plain right off the shelf. Richer, aromatic Russet Bosc Pears will retain their graceful shape cooked, and are wonderful served spiced and warm. Smooth, sweet d’Anjou Pears are right around the corner. If plain raw fruit seems too boring, and cooked seems like too much work, you can serve pears more fancily by pairing them with cheese and wine. Pairing is not an exact science, and different varieties of pear will ripen between now and the end of the year to experiment with. Try smooth goat cheese or creamy Brie and a dry white wine with your d’Anjou Pears. Strong cheeses like Feta or Stilton go nicely with Bartletts, perhaps with slightly sweet wines. The best combinations will combine your existing favorites and catch your friends off guard! SA
    American Askutasquash
    Organic Squash VarietiesWhile it’s not always possible to find locally grown organic foods, it’s easy to prioritize eating organic foods that are native to your part of the world. There are gourds to be found around the globe, but squash is a satisfying and uniquely American food. For thousands of years before the first Thanksgiving, people in South America and North America were cultivating numerous varieties of squash. Along with her “sisters”, corn and beans, squash has a long history as an American staple food.
     Pilgrims had difficulty pronouncing the Narrangansett Indian word “askutasquash” and abbreviated it simply to “squash.” Native American variations on the word include the, “isquotersquash” in the Iroquois language and the Algonquins’ term: “askoot.”

    Varieties we now call “Winter Squash” have tough, protective skins, vitamin-rich edible flesh, and hold seeds in their hollow centers. These varieties are planted mid-summer, and harvested throughout autumn; winter is part of their name because their tough skins help them easily survive in storage into the coldest months. Pick squash with firm skins that are not too glossy, the colors of winter squash varieties are stunning and subtle—bright and rusty oranges, creamy white and yellow, deep greens—and some varieties even come in shades of gray blue.

    There is as subtle a range of delicious mild flavors among winter squash. Acorn squash is sweet, delicate, and nutty. Butternut squash is simple and sweet. Delicata and Carnival are among the sweetest varieties. Hubbard has a moderate flavor and dense flesh. All varieties are high in fiber and (in spite of their sweetness) are low in carbohydrates.  Most are extremely high in vitamin A, and a good source of vitamin C and potassium.
    Nutritious, tasty, and easy to cook—squash is among the best American comfort foods, and the time is ripe to enjoy your favorite askutasquash.  Sarah Aubry