Kabocha Squash...it's new to me!: Healthy Eating

Kabocha Bagel with black-eyed peas and green beans

It seems like far too many weeks ago I had lunch with a friend at ABC Kitchen in Manhattan. This restaurant is around the block from a very large green market that is held in Union Square. As most restaurants are trying to do these day... their menu is seasonal with many of their ingredients from the local farmer's market. An appetizer of Roasted Kabocha Toast really stood out to me because I had never eaten kabocha squash before. There are not many vegetables I haven't eaten... so I was intrigued by this Japanese pumpkin that is sweeter than butternut squash with the texture of a sweet potato.

I finally got around to buying a kabocha. They are grown locally and are available all winter. I wanted to share my kabocha toast experience with my family. I didn't have any bread for toast, but we had a lot of bagels leftover from a brunch, so I improvised the ABC recipe and replaced ricotta cheese and toast with cream cheese and bagels. It worked out fine. It was delicious as a side dish with black-eyed peas and green beans.

I highly recommend experimenting with kabocha, beside it being a different and tasty squash; it is a mega source of beta carotene along with iron, vitamin C and potassium. Check out some these interesting recipes: