Night Is The Time When Garden Centers Are Sold

It's still hot here - mid 80s, and low 70s at night. For days now, the air after nightfall has been soft, and it caresses the skin - it's what I call “air temperature air,” which makes no sense, but it’s what I've always called that soft, velvety night air that is the exact temperature of your skin, so you feel like you are moving through emptiness. Mid 80s until at least the weekend. The fall equinox is in less than 48 hours.

As this velvety night deepened, I was faced with our latest CSA vegetables, which this week included an acorn squash – a welcome change from the copious quantities of summer squash we’ve been getting in recent weeks, some of which still grace our refrigerator drawers. Don't get me wrong, they've been delicious, but, you know, very. many. Normally, I’d set it aside since they keep for at least a couple of weeks. But this one had an undetected small spoiled spot (how'd I miss that?), so I needed to use it right away. But how?

Lunch tomorrow, I decided. Pulled some andouille sausage from the freezer. Cut open the squash, scraped seeds, removed spoilage. Nuked the squash. (I can't believe how sweet it tastes. Why do people insist on adding things like brown sugar or marshmallows to its lush sweetness?) Slivered and roasted an onion. Diced, browned and drained the sausage. Mixed it all with a little shredded cheddar, an egg and a little half and half. Salt, cracked green peppercorns. Baked. Moaned in ecstasy at the flavour of a stolen nibble while portioning it out.

Acorn Squash Mock Souffle

1 acorn squash, nuked until soft (cut it open, remove seeds and nuke it covered for 13 minutes). You will need 8 oz. of cooked squash
6 oz. andouille sausage*
1 onion, slivered
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 oz. shredded cheddar
1 large egg
3 Tbsp half and half
kosher or sea salt
pepper

Preheat the oven to 400F. While acorn squash is cooking, dice and brown the sausage in a skillet over medium heat. Drain and set aside. Spread the slivered onion on a foil-covered baking sheet and toss with olive oil, salt and pepper. Bake for 10 minutes, or until edges brown. Remove from oven and roll foil like a jelly roll, tucking ends in. Set aside. Lower oven to 325.

When squash is tender, remove flesh from skin and place in mixing bowl. Let cool. Mix thoroughly with cheese, egg and half and half. Chop onion into small pieces and add to squash mixture. Add slightly cooled sausage and mix well. Add salt and pepper to taste. Put mixture in 2 cup baking dish, and bake in oven for about 25 minutes.

2 servings.

*You can use any kind of Cajun andouille. (French andouillette is a whole ‘nother animal, or part of one, at least. By the way, while you’re there, check out the gumbopages blog. Great source for news and updates about people and places of New Orleans in these uncertain times.) That said, I’m partial to andouille from Oscar’s Smokehouse – yes, you're right, it’s not Cajun, it’s from upstate New York. But it’s really, really good sausage.

Oh – and the garden centers? Years ago, we watched another velvety night fall as we sat on a verandah in Cruz Bay, St. John, USVI. A friend of my parents sighed, and said, “Night is the time when darkness enters the soul,” which, needless to say, was misheard. On nights of air temperature air, I often think of garden centers being sold.