Is there a more autumnal vegetable than squash? Is there a more perfect item to have on your Thanksgiving table than pumpkin? No and no.
Jerk-Spiced Squash and Callaloo Wellington
Raised in South London by Jamaican parents, Craig and Shaun McAnuff have a large UK audience for their platform Original Flava. In their second book, Natural Flava, they have a wealth of vegan Caribbean recipes, including a plantain hummus and this jerk-spiced squash and callaloo wellington, which is both delicious and visually stunning. It's also a great main dish for a vegetarian Thanksgiving. Get the recipe
Gjelina's Grilled Kabocha Squash with Mint-Pomegranate Pesto
You can thank chef Travis Lett for this recipe, which you'll also find in Gjelina: Cooking from Venice, California. Japanese kabocha squash is a winter favorite. Grilled, roasted or steamed, its sweet, nutty flavor is intensified when seasoned with a bit of flaky sea salt and olive oil. If you can't find it, red kuri squash has an identical flavor but a more delicate skin, making it an excellent substitute. Get the recipe
Zucca Agrodolce (Sweet-Sour Squash)
This classic Sicilian recipe is one of Evan Kleiman's favorites. It's part of the Italian pantheon of sweet-sour antipasti dishes. The squash is sauteed then marinated in lightly sweetened red wine vinegar with a touch of garlic and mint. It tastes great and looks pretty. Get the recipe
A pumpkin stuffed with rice, vegetables and herbs is a tasty and showstopping main dish for a Thanksgiving meal. Photo by Shutterstock.
Dorie Greenspan's Pumpkin Stuffed with Everything Good
Baking goddess Dorie Greenspan has savory skills too! This recipe involves stuffing a two or three-pound pumpkin with stale bread, cheese, garlic, and herbs. Dorie includes bacon in her recipe but you can skip that if you want it to be vegetarian. Get the recipe
Roasted Delicata Squash Salad
Benny Bohm, who was the general manager of Ammo Café, shared the restaurant's popular squash salad recipe. One of the best things about delicata squash is that the skin doesn't have to be removed before cooking. Get the recipe
Squash Vines aka Grattaculi (or Butt Scratchers)
Squash vines are the ultimate veg for the frugal, Evan Kleiman says. In Italy, they are called grattaculi, which translates to "butt scratchers." The vines are fibrous and prickly, hence the name. The trick to making the vines edible is to use a sharp paring knife to peel off the roughest of the prickles, much like you would for asparagus. Make a little nick to create an edge then peel back and discard the long strings, which will come off. That said, the finished product is still basically prickly fiber. It is truly a way to make something from nothing. Get the recipe
A roasted squash dish adorned with currants and pine nuts celebrates the season and rings in fall. Chef Jody Williams says it can be served warm or at room temperature and is even better the next day. Photo by Gentl & Hyers.
Via Carota's Zucca in Agrodolce (Squash Marinated with Onions and Currants)
Any number of squash varieties are well suited for this uniquely Venetian marinade, according to Jody Williams and Rita Sodi of Via Carota. Butternut is sweet and silky in texture while red kuri has dense flesh and a subtle chestnut flavor with an edible skin. Arrange it in a single layer so the marinade and spices flavor every slice. Get the recipe
Sweet Corn and Chive-Stuffed Squash Blossoms
The sweet corn and squash blossoms make this more of a summer recipe but in Southern California, you can get squash blossoms most of the year. We won't tell if you use canned corn. Get the recipe
To make candied pumpkin that tastes good, you need to start with sugar or cinderella pumpkins. Photo by David Malosh.
Pumpkin Candy
The Romans often preserved fruits and nuts by candying them in honey. But it was only after the 10th century, when the Arabs introduced sugar to Sicily, that candying evolved into a confectionary art. Pumpkin lends itself especially well to candying, scholar and editor Darra Goldstein explains. Peeled and cut into chunks, it is parboiled before being immersed in sugar syrup and ends up as a chewy, slightly sticky treat. Get the recipe
Underappreciated Fragrant Spice Pumpkin Pie
Flavor scientist Arielle Johnson started thinking about how medieval spices that aren't common now — like grains of paradise and cubeb pepper — would taste in a pumpkin pie. The answer: great! This recipe uses both of those spices along with two types of cardamom: korarima (Ethiopian cardamom) and green cardamom. The result is a less sweet, very fragrant, earthy, and somewhat spicy pumpkin custard, which goes well with a flaky and well-browned pie crust. Get the recipe