Tropic of Tzimmes

Farmshare squash, the mother of invention ... This also applies to anyone whose neighbor grows zucchini. You know the situation -- a nearly endless supply of something that you'd love to eat once in a while. The household's last squash of the year was a Hubbard, a little under a foot in diameter. Since I was faced with the dual responsibility of a household dinner and a potluck contribution in the same night, I decided to see how much of that Hubbard I could use up with one recipe. Well, two-thirds is a decent start ...

What I ended up with was reminiscent of light-colored tzimmes. Though the ingredients were a little too close together in color, the flavor was just great, giving me a wonderful way to use up squash. My recipe is definitely sweet, but retains the savory flavor of the main ingredient; you can use it as dessert (topped with vanilla bean ice cream! Mmm!) or a side dish in a main course.

Try this out with your squash of choice. I would guess this amount serves around 15 people.

In a large bowl, mix together:

• 12 cups small cubes of squash (1/2 inch to 3/4 inch)
• 2.5 cups pineapple chunks
• 2 cups golden raisins (large, if you can get 'em)

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Arrange 1.5 cups of chopped pecans on a tray for toasting.

In a separate bowl, combine:

• all the juice from the pineapple
  
• 13.5 ounces coconut milk
• 1/3 cup lemon juice
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons minced ginger
• 2 tablespoons melted butter
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
  
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon salt
  
• 1.5 cups coconut liqueur

Mix these ingredients well. Note: I couldn't find coconut liqueur like I wanted, but pineapple-coconut seemed to do fine, and others in the same flavor array should also work.

Pour the liquid into the large bowl and coat all the pieces thoroughly. There should be some standing liquid. Put the combination into one or more baking dishes so that most solid pieces are touching the liquid, and bake for 50 minutes or until the squash is soft to the fork. You can simultaneously use the oven for toasting those pecans.

When the dish is cooked, top it with the pecans. Coming right out of the oven, it should be cool enough to eat just a minute or two after being served.