Colorado Squash Casserole Celebrates Fall Harvest

Colorado Proud’s October recipe combines three varieties of locally grown winter squash

By North Forty News Staff | NorthFortyNews.com

The fall harvest season is underway across Colorado, bringing winter squash, orchard fruit, grains, and root vegetables to farmers’ markets and kitchens throughout the state.

Colorado Proud is highlighting that harvest with its October Recipe of the Month: Squash Au Gratin, a hearty casserole featuring acorn, butternut and spaghetti squash.

Winter squash has deep agricultural roots in the region. Squash was traditionally grown by Indigenous communities as one of the “Three Sisters,” alongside corn and beans. Today, varieties including acorn, butternut and delicata squash remain an important part of Colorado’s fall harvest.

The featured recipe, from Chef Jason Morse, combines roasted squash with Parmesan, Pecorino Romano, heavy cream, and roasted pecans. It makes four servings and requires about 15 minutes of preparation, plus roasting and baking time.

Squash Au Gratin

Yield: 4 servings
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: About 1½ hours

Ingredients

• 1 medium acorn squash
• 1 medium butternut squash
• 1 medium spaghetti squash
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 2 cups roasted pecan pieces
• 1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
• 1 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese
• 2½ cups heavy cream
• Fresh parsley, finely chopped

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Cut the squash in half and remove the seeds. Rub both sides with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
3. Place the squash skin-side up on a baking sheet and roast for approximately 40 minutes, or until tender.
4. Remove from the oven and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.
5. Once cooled, peel the squash and keep each variety separate.
6. Dice the acorn squash, mash the butternut squash, and pull the spaghetti squash into strands.
7. Coat a square baking pan with nonstick spray. Place the spaghetti squash on the bottom, then alternate layers of squash with cream, Pecorino Romano, and Parmesan.
8. Top the final layer with pecans, cream, and cheese.
9. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another five minutes, allowing the cheese to melt and lightly brown.
10. Garnish with chopped parsley and serve.

Colorado Proud encourages shoppers to look for locally produced ingredients during the fall harvest and offers an online directory and interactive map for finding Colorado farms, markets and producers.

The October feature also suggests pairing the casserole with an apple-and-ginger mocktail made with Colorado cider, honey, and ginger ale or ginger beer.

Learn more about Colorado-grown products and find additional recipes at ColoradoProud.com.