This time of year, one can't help but be enamored with the third sister: Beautiful, bulbous squash has reached the peak of her maturity and grown into quite a sight.
Here in Tucson, there seem to be endless varieties of the looker: mini red bumpy squash, smooth yellow spaghetti, squash that look like space ships and weird jellyfish and squash that look like giant banana candies. Most of these are imports from other lands, but there is one variety with an incredibly rich history in the Southwest.
The cushaw squash, domesticated in Mesoamerica around 7000 to 3000 B.C., has been a vital part of Southwestern agriculture for at least hundreds of years. The crop plants well with the other two sisters, corn and beans, is a Tohono O'odham specialty, where it goes by the name Ha:l.
People are also reading…
When it's fully mature in the fall, Ha:l becomes darker and greener, and can grow up to 40 pounds. Its sweet mild flavor makes it perfect for dessert empanadas, with brown sugar. The versions on sale Monday at the San Xavier Co-op Farm's store at 8100 S. Oidak Wog, just down the street from Mission San Xavier del Bac, were smaller and yellow. To cook, chop them up into large pieces, steam, and then scoop out the starchy sweet flesh. An article in the Au-Authm Action News also describes the process of cutting the squash into spirals and drying for later use.
Before Halloween, I spotted a similar variety while driving down the road on South Twelfth Avenue south of Irvington Road. At the El Frida stand, which also sells corn and chile verde when it's in season, the squash were much larger. (I also saw some at Food City, 1221 W. Irvington Road, in a bin labeled "Mexican Squash") The man working the stand said the squash can be mixed with canela, and made into dessert. Or also, the seeds can be used in pipian, a mole-like sauce used on a variety of meats and vegetables including chicken and fish.
I admit, I am still a Ha:l novice! But I took one home and am waiting to try it out! If you have any tips, recipes or stories about this fascinating squash, let me know in the comments section!
Recipe for Saguaro Syrup Glazed Tohono O’odham Squash, from the Tohono O'odham Community Action website, tocaonline.org
2 cups baked, mashed Tohono O’odham or butternut squash
2 tbsp melted butter
1/8 cup saguaro syrup (can be purchased at the San Xavier Co-op Farm)
Place mashed squash in a buttered/oiled 8x11 pan. Combine melted butter and saguaro syrup. Brush over squash. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until squash is heated through and the glaze is bubbly.
Yield – 2 cups
