Sweet Mama Squash Chips

Winter squash has been making its appearance at the farmer's markets for the past couple of weeks now. The first acorn squash of the season was pretty grim but the next squash purchased, a beautiful red Kuri, was wonderful. My latest squash acquisition was a "Sweet Mama" kabocha squash, a completely new variety for me.

I'd looked at the Sweet Mamas for several weeks and thought they looked like they were covered in barnacles:



Maybe I've just been a little homesick for the ocean but this gnarled appearance spoke to me. And it was saying "Try me! Try me!"

I've never had any reason not to listen to the voices before and so I tried it.

Thanks to the internet, I discovered that kabocha squash was drier than others and could be treated the same way one might treat buttercup squash. No, that doesn't mean you hold it under your chin...when I checked the entry for buttercup squash, it mentioned a similarity to sweet potatoes.

This is not necessarily a good thing for me as I really do not like sweet potatoes. Well, unless they're made into a pie with pecans but that's for another day.

Well, I may not like sweet potatoes but I do like chips and so I decided I would make "sweet mama squash chips" to go with my dinner tonight. (Or, "sweet mama oven fries" for those who don't speak Jen.)

First, the squash was halved and seeded, then cut into quarters. Each quarter was cut into rough 1/4" slices and then peeled. The slices were tossed with olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper.



The slices were then put on a sheet pan and baked in a moderate oven. After about 20 minutes, they were turned to brown up all sides.



Now, if I were really clever, I would have come up with a dip for these chips!