Question for You Butternut Squash Chefs

If squash is anything like potatoes, it needs to be poked several times before cooking to let the steam out. Otherwise it will get harder and harder as the steam builds up inside of it, rather than softer as it cooks.

I agree with the other posters that it should be cut in half before you cook it, anyway.

I hope this helps!

Butternut squash... will get soft as it is baked.

Did you cut it in half first or cut it into chunks, or just stick the entire thing in the oven?
It doesn't take long to soften....
Maybe you had another kind of squash?
Butternut squash also is not "stringy."

When I do butternut squash I place it in a roasting pan with some water. I cut it into 1/4's, I also puncture the outer skin with a knife a few times..

I do this so that I can cook it a little faster. If you only cut it in half 20 to 30 minutes should be fine with the above directions.

I cut mine in half - put cut side down in a shallow pan with 1/4" of water. Bake at 400 for 45 minutes. It has been perfect every time - I was able to push a fork through the skin just like a baked potato.

You might want to see if your oven has the right temperature.

Soup! In a pot with some chicken stock, roasted garlic, some spices, dollup of sour cream and sprinkle of chives, voila! Dinner is served!

I second the soup idea for using your puree. For making finger food, I would halve and seed it, then peel with a potato peeler. Chop into pieces of the intended final size, and then either simmer in a little vegetable broth or microwave with a little water in the bottom to help steam it. Cooking these little pieces to the stage you want them is usually easier and more versatile than baking the whole thing. I often include squash in a veggie or bean soup, and give my 10-month old daughter most of the pieces to handle herself. Good luck!

I've never tried roasting a butternut squash. Usually I peel it, cut it in half, remove the seeds, then dice it up into bite size chunks. From there I steam it till tender or bake it in a casserole. There are lot's of wonderful squash soups (some use curry - Yum!) and any pumpkin soup recipes will be fine if you substitute pumpkin with butternut. Butternut is very versatile!

Are you absolutely sure it was a butternut squash and not a spaghetti squash?? Spaghetti squash are stringy - I can't imagine how a butternut could be stringy even if it was not done all the way. This is how I cook my butternut: Cut in half lenghwise, scoop out seeds, place face down in a glass baking pan with about 1/2 of water. Bake at 400 for 30-40 min depending on size.

Cut it in half lengthwise, dig out the seeds and strings, and put it in a glass baking dish, 'face up,' with about 3/4" of water. Cover it with foil and bake it for 45-50 minutes at about 350-375.

Every once in a while, if you want a treat (not for finger food for your baby), add a couple of Tbsp. of brown sugar, a T of honey, and a T or so of maple syrup before you cover the pan. All that stuff melts in the 'seed well,' and you can then mash it in with the squash when you take it out of the oven. It's really delicious.

Cut it open, scrape out the seeds/stringy bits with a spoon, and bake it face down in a pan with a rim. Pour water into the pan (I line the pan with foil to make clean up easier). I bake at 425 for about 40 mins to have it very soft.

As for the puree, there is a great Butternut Squash Cheesecake recipe from Weight Watchers (the sweet squash replaces a lot of the sugar). It tastes like pumpkin.

Have fun!

make pumpkin bread usking butternut squash. squeeze out as much water as you can.

next time cut the squash into chunks. peel using an apple peeler. and steam. it will still be mushy. sorta like cooked zucchini.

I agree with the other poster...you sure it wasn't spaghetti squash?? If it truly was a butternut, than be sure to scoop out all of the inner seeds & "strings" from the middle. Then you lay them cut side down on the pan. Add just a little water to the pan (but not absolutely needed) and roast at maybe 375-400F for at least 45 min. I check done ness when you can stick a fork through it. You could cube it too, but I find I about cut my fingers off doing this. If you're finding it's still not done by an hour, your temperature might be way off in your oven and you might need it serviced.

Did you cut it in half, lengthwise? I don't think you are supposed to try baking it whole as most recipes I've found says to cut in half. I normally add a little olive oil, salt and pepper and bake. It usually takes 30 minutes (approx depending on size) on 425.

You can make butternut squash soup which is AMAZING! I don't have my recipe on my but check out allrecipes.com and you'll be sure to find many.

you can mix pureed squash into almost anything. freeze it in cubes and keep leftovers in your freezer for future use too. i put it in chili, spaghetti sauce, baked beans and boxed mac & cheese, about 1/4 cup will do. you can even mix a couple of teaspoons into ketchup and give it to the kiddies and they'll never even know it's there.

When I bake butternut squash, which is once a week. I cut the stem off and then cut the squash in half length-wise. Scoop out the seeds and stringy stuff at the bottom. Cover a cookie sheet with alum foil and back flesh down at 400 degrees for about 50 minutes. Comes out very, very soft. Yes, it can be a bit stringy when fully cooked so I always puree it. My daughter is 6 and my son is 3 and they LOVE it...when it's pureed it reminds me of mashed sweet potatoes. If you don't want to feed it to her pureed, add it to meatloaf, sauce, chili, etc. It's delicious. If you want to make it like a more finger food, chop it into small pieces before baking and coat it with olive oil, salt and pepper. Let it bake at 400 degrees for about 40 minutes. Enjoy!

I cut it in cubes, cut up equal amount of peeled apples, Julian style cut up Anis, olive oil and bake on 350 until tender......yummy!!! I let it get a little caramelized.
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