A while back I Instagramed this picture of a HUGE pink banana squash I bought at the Farmer’s Market in Milford PA.
Imagine my disappointment when breaking open this bigger than a baby vegetable to roast it, the flesh was sooo not pink, but pumpkin color.
The seeds, however, surpassed expectations. They were plump and easy to pick out. I sprinkled them with adobo flavored salt and roasted them. Too late, I realized I should have candied them with brown sugar and ginger and sprinkled them on top of the finished tart, instead I cut up some crystalized ginger and sprinkled it on top. But boy were those adobe seasoned seeds good.
After roasting the fake pink banana squash, I pureed the flesh and made curd out of it. A quick chocolate ginger flavored pie crust was whipped together, baked, cooled and then filled with the pink banana squash curd.
The sting of ginger perfectly enhanced the sweet banana squash taste.One taste stopped my pouting over my pink disappointment. This tart is a keeper and a perfect Thanksgiving dessert option.
For the pink banana squash curd:
Ingredients:
- 3 cups banana squash purée*
- 9 egg yolks
- 3/4 cups sugar
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
*See below
Directions:
- In a large deep saucepan, heat the squash purée until almost boiling. Reduce heat to a simmer.
- In a stand mixer use the whisk attachment to whip the egg yolks and sugar together until pale yellow and creamy.
- Mix in the extract, then the cornstarch and flour.
- Quickly whisk in 1/4 cup of the heated squash purée to the yolk sugar mixture to temper it.
- Pour the tempered egg mixture into the saucepan with the rest of the purée and mix together.
- Bump the heat up slightly and keep stirring the mixture until it reaches a pudding like consistency.
- Remove from heat and let cool completely.
- Transfer to a container and chill the curd in the fridge.
For the chocolate ginger tart crust:
(Very slightly adapted from Simply Scratch’s Chocolate Pie Crust Recipe)
Ingredients:
- 1-1/8 cup all purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 tablespoons white granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoon ground ginger powder
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 1 stick ice-cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
- 2-3 tablespoons ice cold water
Directions:
Place the flour, cocoa, sugar, ginger powder, salt, and butter into a food processor and pulse until it becomes crumb consistency of crumbs.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F
Fit the dough to the bottom and sides of the pan.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil
- Place the pink banana squash on the baking sheet and place it in the oven.
- Roast for 30 minutes.
- Remove squash from the oven and slice into pieces. Lay them back on the baking sheet.
- Return the pieces to the oven and bake for another 20-30 minutes or until the squash flesh becomes tender or you can easily run a fork through the skin and flesh together.
- Remove from oven and let cool completely.
- Scrape out the seeds and the stringy parts from the squash pieces.
- If desired, separate the seeds, wash and dry them for roasting later.
- Use a large spoon to scrape the flesh out, separating it from the skin.
- Working in batches, place the squash flesh in a food processor and purée until smooth.
- Transfer to a container and refrigerate until ready to use.
