This past Saturday, it felt like fall might have finally made its way to Houston. When we woke up, it was chilly and the sky was a bit overcast. C put on a flannel shirt and I chose a sweater. It turned out to be a lovely, sunny day, though the high was only 67º. We met a friend for pastries, stopped at a coffee shop, grabbed lunch at the Korean Festival, and picked out pumpkins to paint (since they rot too quickly once they've been carved). While perusing the bins of pumpkins, I came across a bin of "decorative squash." I got excited thinking I might find a cushaw squash. Sure enough! There weren't any orange cushaws but there were a number of green cushaw squash to choose from. Since the price was per squash instead of per pound, C picked out the biggest one.
So far we've only prepared the neck and it made over 5 cups of puree! I'm hoping to cook the bottom bit by bit to use in dishes that call for chunks of cooked squash instead of puree. We'll probably be eating cushaw squash everything for the next month. Serendipitously, we have overnight visitors every weekend for the next 3 weeks, so we'll have plenty of mouths to feed! Plus, sleepovers are the best excuse for cinnamon rolls and I'm already dreaming up a cushaw squash version! In the meantime, I decided to make a cushaw squash cheesecake.
I met C on a chilly October morning two years ago. Later that evening, while we were talking at a Halloween party, it came up I liked to bake. He asked my specialty. I told him cheesecake (though I have no idea why). He keeps pointing out that we've been dating over a year and a half and I have yet to bake him a cheesecake. This one should satisfy him for at least another year!
Objective
Make a layered cheesecake using a cushaw squash. The filling was adapted from Pumpkin Streusel Cheesecake from Chocolate and Carrots and the crust is based on Graham Cracker Crust from The Kitchn.
Materials
For the crust:
2 cups graham cracker/gingersnap/coconut shortbread crumbs (or any combination thereof)
2 tbsp. granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground ginger (omit if using gingersnaps)
pinch nutmeg
pinch cloves
6 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
For the cheesecake:
8 oz. reduced fat cream cheese
1/4 cup granulated white sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 egg
2 tbsp. sour cream or Greek yogurt
1/4 cup winter squash puree (see Supplementary Materials)
1 tsp. light brown sugar
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ginger
pinch cloves
pinch nutmeg
For the streusel topping:
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup light brown sugar
pinch cinnamon
1/4 cup unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes
Methods
1. Preheat the oven to 350º.
2. Make the crust: Crumble the graham crackers/cookies into a food processor. Add the sugar and spices. Process until the graham crackers are fine crumbs. Stir in the melted butter until well combined. Pat into a 9" pie plate, making sure to cover the bottom and sides. Set aside.
3. Make the filling: Cream the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla until smooth. Beat in the egg, then stir in the sour cream. Pour all but 1/2 cup of the batter into the graham cracker crust. Use a spatula to move the filling to the edges and smooth into an even layer. Stir the pumpkin/squash puree, brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg into the remaining 1/2 cup filling. Pour over the bottom cheesecake layer and spread evenly. Bake at 350º for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare the streusel topping.
3. Make the streusel topping: Combine the streusel ingredients in a medium sized bowl. Rub the butter into the sugar to form a crumble topping. Set aside. Once the cheesecake has baked for 20 minutes, remove it from the oven. Sprinkle the crumble topping in an even layer over the cheesecake. Return to the oven for 15-20 minutes, or until the center of the cheesecake has set. Cool completely on a wire rack, then refrigerate overnight before serving.
Results
The crust was aromatic and flavorful (for full disclosure: I used 1 package of graham crackers and as many coconut shortbread cookies as it took to make 2 cups of crumbs). The cheesecake layer was thin but creamy with the flavor of pumpkin pie. The topping lent a crunch and was buttery and just sweet enough.
Discussion and Future Directions
This was a huge hit! We took it to a birthday party and came home with just one slice that was missing its tip. Everyone happily devoured their piece and I know at least one person had a second. The only complaint was that I didn't make two (after I shared that the original recipe made 2 cheesecakes). I was proud of myself for only making one because I suspected that if I'd made two, two would have been eaten. I was also very pleased that the pecan streusel turned out well after halving both the butter and the sugar. I certainly didn't miss either and actually thought that the butter could be reduced a bit more.
The only other change I might make in the future would be to make 1.5x the filling. The amount of filling here is the perfect amount for a store-bought graham cracker crust (because they're a little smaller than 9"). I think this turned out great (and lower calorie) as I made it, but it would have been nice to see a little bit more of the winter squash layer. Alternatively, I could put the squash layer on the bottom and the white layer on top. To tell it true, this recipe doesn't need tweaking! Plus, it would make a wonderful addition to a Thanksgiving table in addition to or in place of pumpkin pie.
Supplementary Materials
Winter Squash Puree
(For example: pumpkin, cushaw, butternut, delicata, or kabocha)
Preheat the oven to 350º. Line a baking sheet with greased foil. Remove the stem of the squash and cut the squash in half the long way. Scoop out the seeds and place the squash cut-side-down onto the prepared baking sheet. Bake until a fork easily pierces the skin and flesh of the squash. Depending on the size of your squash, this could range from 30 minutes to 90 minutes. Let the squash cool until you can touch it without burning your fingers. Scoop the flesh from the skin and process it in the food processor or blender until smooth. *If you're lucky enough to find a cushaw, you'll probably want to cut off the stem and the neck and prepare the neck and base of the squash separately.
