Caramel Squash Butter

Caramel Squash Butter

Here's a recipe that may provide welcome variety once you've made that squash soup, squash puree, and spherified squash gel. . .  It only takes a little bit of cooked winter squash to make a pint jar, and it goes down well on toast on these cold mornings.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups (packed) Cooked Squash (see below for techniques to maximize flavor)

1/2 c Sugar

1 pinch Salt

1/4 c Water

1/2 tsp Cider Vinegar

10 cardamom seeds (not the big pods), cracked 

First, roast your squash until very tender. (Butternut, Golden Nugget, Kuri, Buttercup - all varieties will work.) Then, when it is still hot, turn it cut-side-up and let it steam off for awhile. This makes use of the Golden Rule of Savory Cooking: remove water to intensify flavor.

Then, get a small heavy saucepan on the stove. Put the sugar and salt in together and turn the heat to med-high to make caramel. Have the water measured and ready close to hand. Without stirring with a utensil, swirl and tilt the pan as the sugar liquefies and starts to turn amber. 

When all the chunks of sugar have dissolved into golden bliss,

you carefully add the water, knowing that there will be furious bubbling and steam to avoid.

Let the caramel calm down and add the cooked squash pulp.

Lower the heat and stir to crush any lumps.  As the mixture simmers gently, it will smooth out.

Here are 10 cardamom seeds I blended in a coffee mill for 30 seconds.  Add them in.  (Or use finely ground cardamom if you have it. Just a pinch will do.)

Now the mixture is getting thick and smooth. Remove from the heat and add the vinegar.  This makes use of the Saucier's Secret: add a little acid to amplify flavor.

(If you really want it smooth, you could at this point put it through a fine sieve or blend it with a little wand mixer.) I just put mine in a mason jar and called it a day. 

Try it to believe it!

Namaste.