I loved the discussion last night on Facebook, whether squash was a fruit or vegetable.  As Susan (from Little Ladies Who Lunch) pointed out, they are botanically classified as a fruit, but (As Ashley mentioned) in the culinary world, because of the way we use them, they are considered a vegetable!

Butternut squash, like other winter squashes, are a great to include in your kids diet!  They are:

• An excellent source of Vitamin A (which has been shown to protect lungs against toxins like cigarette smoke)
• Great sources of Vitamin C, potassium, fiber, and manganese
• Good source of folate and Omega 3 fatty acids! (which is beneficial to growing kids brains!)

So, what can you do with butternut squash besides make soup?  A fast and easy method of cooking it, is to roast in a hot oven.  This is what we did:

• Chop 1 lb. butternut squash into 1 inch or half inch cubes

• Place in bowl and add:

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

• Arrange on baking sheet and sprinkle the top with:

parmesan cheese

salt

• Bake at 400 degrees for 10-15 minutes, stirring once.

Step 1: Chop squash (or buy pre-chopped)	Step 2: Stir Olive oil and balsamic vinegar on top.
Step 3: Arrange on baking sheet and top with salt and parmesan cheese	Step 4: Bake at 400 degrees for 10-15 minutes, stirring once.

We  love butternut squash!

So, my neighbor was asking me if you can replace pumpkin with butternut squash in pumpkin pie? Anyone ever tried that?