The color orange is everywhere right now, and the view from my office window is exquisite. Although I dislike seeing the trees lose their leaves to winter, the period building up to the ‘big shed’ is resplendent with color. Pumpkins adorn doorsteps and soups and stews burst with color and the wonderful antioxidant, beta carotene, that provides us with a natural immune booster.

Here are a few of my favorite winter squash recipes to help make your autumn a cozy and healthy season.

Curried butternut squash soup with apples from The Silver Palate Cookbook4 Tbs sweet butter (serves 4-6)

• 4 Tbsp sweet butter
• 2 cups finely chopped yellow onions
• 4-5 tsp curry powder
• 2 medium-size butternut squash –(about 3 pounds altogether)
• 2 apples, cored, peeled and chopped
• 3 cups chicken soup
• 1 cup apple juice
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 shredded unpeeled Granny Smith apple garnish

Directions

1. Melt the butter in a pot. Add chopped onions and curry powder and cook, covered, over low heat until onions are tender, about 25 minutes.
2. Peel the squash , scrape out the seeds, and chop the flesh.
3. When onions are tender, pour in the stock, add squash and apples, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, until squash and apples are very tender, about 25 minutes.
4. Pour the soup through a strainer, reserving liquid, and transfer the solids to the bowl of a food processor or mixing bowl. Add 1 cup of the cooking stock and process until smooth. You can also use a hand blender or plunger, also called “smart sticks.”
5. Return pureed soup to the pot and add apple juice and additional cooking liquid, about 2 cups, until soup is of desired consistency.
6. Season to taste with salt and pepper, simmer briefly to heat through, and serve immediately, garnished with shredded apple.

Stuffed acorn squash (serves 4)

• 2 acorn squash
• 2 tsp olive old
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• 1 cup chopped leeks (1 small leek)
• 1 cup chopped apple or pear (1-2 fruit)
• freshly ground pepper
• 2 cups sliced tender greens into ribbons (Swiss chard, spinach, kale)
• 4 fresh sage leaves, coarsely chopped
• 2 cups cooked quinoa, millet or rice
• 1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
• 1/2 cup roasted pecan pieces

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Cut 2 acorn squash in half through the stem, and remove seeds and strings
3. Place squash flesh-side down in the dish and bake until very tender when pricked with a fork, 30-40 minutes. Remove from the oven and raise oven temperature to 425 degrees.
4. Place olive oil in a skillet and cook the leeks until soft, about 3 minutes. Add apple, 1.4 tsp salt, pepper and cook for an additional minute.
5. Add cooked greens, the grain, and pecans.
6. Cook for another minute, stirring to combine. Remove from heat.
7. Flip over the squash and fill with the prepared mixture. Sprinkle with cheese and bake about 10 minutes until the cheese melts.

Okay, so cake isn’t the healthiest, but once in a while it’s a delectable treat. My college roommate’s mom made this for us when we went to her home for a weekend. Although I don’t make it often, it always comes out perfectly and it’s a sure hit.

Pumpkin cake

• 2 cups cooked pumpkin or 1 can of pumpkin
• 2 cups flour
• 1 cup coconut sugar (I always cut the amount of sugar by half. The recipe calls for 2 cups.)
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup coconut oil
• 4 eggs, beaten
• 2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt

Mix eggs and sugar. Beat well. Add oil and beat. Add flour, spices, and salt. Blend in pumpkin and beat well. Pour into greased tube pan. Bake 40-50 minutes at 350 degrees.

Icing

• 8 oz pkg cream cheese
• 1 stick butter
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 4 cups powdered sugar

• Combine butter and cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer (or you may use an electric mixer) and beat until creamy, well-combined, and lump-free.
• Add vanilla extract and salt and stir well to combine.
• With mixer on low, gradually add powdered sugar until completely combined.
• Use to frost completely cooled cake or cupcakes.

Enjoy! Have a happy and safe Halloween!

Barbra Cohn cared for her husband Morris for 10 years. He passed away from younger-onset Alzheimer’s disease in 2010. Afterward, she was compelled to write “Calmer Waters: The Caregiver’s Journey Through Alzheimer’s & Dementia”—Winner of the 2018 Book Excellence Award in Self-Help—in order to help other caregivers feel healthier and happier, have more energy, sleep better, feel more confident, deal with feelings of guilt and grief, and to ultimately experience inner peace. “Calmer Waters” is available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Boulder Book Store, Tattered Cover Book Store,  Indie Bound.org, and many other fine independent bookstores, as well as public libraries.