Last night, a group of 10 of my mommy friends went out for dinner…and some “mommy juice” 😉 . Or Malbec…whatever. We ditched all the dads with the kiddos, dolled up a bit (or, ya know…showered), and enjoyed a nice meal out. Naturally, we talked a lot about kids. And babies. And sleeping (or lack thereof). And nursing. And pregnancy. And so on and so forth.
But we also talked about my second favorite topic of conversation: food!
I don’t know how the topic of acorn squash came up, but as it ends up, there were other fortunate kids that grew up eating acorn squash that has been baked with brown sugar, maple syrup, butter, and pecans. Truly, what’s not to like about that combination? It’s like dessert for dinner…except it really is a dessert with all those sinful ingredients and sweet, rich flavor.
While acorn squash can easily turn into dessert, it’s a more mild winter squash and can definitely morph as easily into a savory dish as it can a dessert dish. Or, what should be a dessert. 😉
When I ran across this concept in Cooking Light, I knew I had to try it. Healthy, yet simple, and so fun. I adapted the preparation method just a bit because a hard-cooked yolk has nothing on a warm, rich, runny yolk and so I opted to cook the eggs in a pan versus the oven. This was the perfect change of pace from our traditional egg and waffle (or pancake) brinner (breakfast for dinner).
Much to my very pleasant surprise, Mr. Prevention even wolfed these down!
- 1 acorn squash, seeds removed and sliced into ½-inch rings (about 6)
- cooking spray
- 6 eggs
- ½ tsp salt
- black pepper, to taste
- Preheat oven to 400 F.
- Mist a baking sheet with cooking spray and arrange the squash rings in a single layer; mist top sides with cooking spray and bake for 8-12 minutes or until beginning to brown.
- Heat a large, nonstick skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add the squash rings and crack an egg into the center of each hole; cover with a lid and cook until yolks are cooked to desired doneness.
So clever!
What a fun recipe! Dare I say prettier than when baked in the hole of toast?
I never would have thought to do this with squash… just saw another recipe for squash and yeast with noodles to substitute for homemade mac & cheese traditionally, and I’m going to have to add this one to my recipe book as well. If I’m going to buy squash, I want to know how to make as much as possible with it.