The yellow to camel-colored butternut squash reminds me of a large prehistoric animal's thigh bone. (In "The Food Lover's Companion," a glossary of food terms, Sharon Tyler Herbst likens its silhouette to a baseball bat with a pear-shaped barrel end.) I find butternut to be the most versatile squash. Its deep orange flesh substitutes very well in pumpkin or sweet-potato recipes, and in those that call for the fleshy Italian variety of pumpkin called zucca.
Frieda Caplan, founder of Frieda's Finest, a Los Angeles produce company,
invented the name spaghetti squash for the formerly obscure vegetable spaghetti. Her new name helped popularize this kooky squash. I visited her warehouse last spring, and saw mountains of lemon-yellow spaghetti squash, each complete with its own authentication sticker. She taught me never to underestimate the power of a name.
Vivid orange pumpkins are synonymous with autumn and are actually the largest members of the winter squash family. If weather conditions are right, pumpkins can grow to more than 100 pounds around here. One such variety is called "Cinderella's Coach."
Some pumpkins are cultivated more for size than taste; these are the ones meant to be carved into jack-o'-lanterns. For cooking, look for varieties called pie pumpkins, sugar pumpkins or cheese pumpkins. Miniature pumpkins called Jack Be Littles are also edible. They can be hollowed out and used to hold pumpkin soup.
Pie pumpkins can be found at roadside stands. These giant oblong pumpkins are intensely orange and especially sweet.
Area markets are selling smaller Spooky pumpkins now. These weigh about 3 pounds, and are sweeter and not as stringy as large pumpkins sold for carving.
