#orange squash

Checkout staff, Sainsbury's, 21 Leicester Street, Northwich, 1979. From the Sainsbury Archive.

I haven’t evaluated their culinary value yet because I’m letting develop into hard skinned winter squash like their pumpkin parent. A pumpkin/zucchini hybrid is probably safe to eat, but in gardens where ornamental winter squash are grown hybrid squash should be avoided. This is because ornamental squash have high levels of a dangerous toxin that could be passed to their half-pumpkin progeny.

Based around the skirt ‘Orange Squash’.

To add on to this, I was half way through my breakfast when the blasted mouse started singing again randomly so I turned round to it and went “there! See!” only to realise my mum was laughing at me and she had pushed its button

Damn, I felt hungry!! I’m gonna be more responsible with my meals now. I thought I’d make a food diary on here just to see the type of things I eat!! If anyone needs me to tag this with anything, feel free to message me. :).

The Uchiki Kuri is one of Japan’s favourite squashes and considered part of Japanese traditional cuisine. However, squash are not native to Japan, so historians think that the ancestors of the Uchiki Kuri were brought to Japan from North America after Japan opened to trade with the USA in 1853. This squash belongs to the Hubbard squash species, which is the species Native Americans of North America originally domesticated. The squash is so popular in Japan that most is actually grown in California and imported to Japan to meet demands! From Japan, the Kuri squash found great popularity in both France and Germany where it is known as the Portimarron. Both the name Uchiki Kuri and Portimarron refer to the squash’s chestnut-like flavour.

The taste of autumn is in the air! I’d like to share my proudest accomplishment from the garden this season - my pumpkin and winter squash harvest. The small orange pumpkins are Baby Bear (Cucurbita pepo), the dark green round squash are Honey Bear Acorn Squash (Cucurbita pepo turbinata), the silvery pumpkins are Crown Prince squash (Cucurbita pepo), and the long peach coloured ones are Candy Roasters (Cucurbita maxima). The long orange squash are hybrids of zucchini and pumpkin that developed a hard skin so they can be stored as winter squash. Not pictured here are my Japanese Uchiki Kuri squash (Cucurbita maxima) and my Peruvian Macre Zapallo (Cucurbita maxima) which are still developing on their vines. My family and I are going to try out a multitude of pumpkin recipes this winter! Please share some of your favourite recipes in the comments. 

Astral and umbral eras