Fall Food

Ah, fall. Something about fall foods that seems like the entirety of summer was simply working towards the deliciousness of squash and apples. I was at the Dane County Farmers' Market this weekend, which happened to be the last outdoor farmers' market of the season, and I got some fantastic deals, including a grocery bag full of acorn squash for a couple bucks. Amazing! I shared some of my steals with some neighbors and started cooking some for myself immediately! Acorn squash is easy: just cut them in half, take out the "guts" and cook them face-down on a baking sheet until they're done. I set my oven to 375 and it took them about 30 minutes, but if you're going to try this you should probably consult some other source, because my oven frequently lies to me. It's a small, robust, antique-y looking thing. What I really need is an oven thermometer...

So what to do with the seeds? I usually just compost them with the rest of the squash insides. This time, I tried roasting them. After I scooped them out of the squash, I pulled the extra stuff off the seeds and rinsed them. This can be tricky! They are slippery little tiny tricksters. Then I dried them off with some paper towels.

Here they are sans gooey stuff and rinsed.

Then I added some olive oil, just enough to coat (a few tablespoons) and some salt, garlic powder, and some paprika. I spred them out on some parchment paper on a baking sheet and set the oven to 300.

I took them out after 15 minutes and tossed them, then put them back in for another 15. You could probably leave them in longer and make them crispier if you wanted to.

Yum! When I'm home alone doing homework, these go fast! They almost taste like sunflower seeds.

On another food-related note, I got one of these fancy coffee makers for my birthday:

Hellooooo caffeine addiction.

These things are just amazing. I've already had two of these today (too much, Anna?) and it is pretty tasty. Flavored coffee is really not my thing, but from the variety-pack I tried a vanilla flavored coffee, and when it is hot and fresh this stuff is good. Highly recommended to people who are busy, lazy, or both (like me).