Slow Cooker Butternut Squash

OMG!!!

At my recent WW meeting our leader told us about this way of cooking a butternut squash...... I was pretty excited to try this because I use a LOT of it in different ways....but..... when I've tried mashing it (I boil it first to cook it) it makes for a VERY watery mash....I was planning on microwaving it and then mashing it (I want to top a Cottage Pie with it)....but when Leslie (our leader) told us about this I dashed straight out and bought one so I could try it......!!!

I was told to pierce the skin of the squash all over and then put it in the slow cooker and cook for 3 hours....job done!!! I was considering buying  a small squash to ensure that it went into the pot but I found a large one that was squat and wide so took a chance on that. I pierced it all over and then put it into the pot, turned it to high and left it (I did actually turn it half way through but I don't think there is any real need for this)

While the squash was in the slow cooker I decided to see if I could find this method on the internet so I googled and there were actually only a couple of posts about it.......basically they were just "...chuck it in, turn it on and go back in 4-5 hours..." no mention of piercing the skin....so I'll try it that way next time.....because there will definitely be a next time....because this is what I found when I went back four hours later....

.......so I cut the top off then cut it in half....

 .......scooped out the seeds....

 ....you can see how much liquid is leaking out of the squash.....as I was holding the squash and scooping the seeds out the liquid was pooling on top of the squash as well.....you can see here how much there was after I had scooped the flesh into a bowl...

 ....so I decided to try and squeeze out some liquid. I put the flesh into a sieve, I then placed a small plate on top and put my granite trivet on top (its very heavy)....

 .....I then left it to sit for 20 minutes....this is how much liquid came out...
 

......I've always used a hand mixer to do my potato mash....ever since Delia showed us how to ....YEARS ago....and I've always had lovely smooth mash....so thats what I did with my squash....it was a bit more fibrous than potato but thats ok....it worked just fine.
I had some Cottage Pie bases that I had made up last week in readiness for my search for a good Butternut Squash mash, so I dug one out and defrosted it, placed my squash mash on top and popped it in the oven on 180 deg for 20 minutes, I finished it off under a hot grill for ten minutes too.
The squash is still wetter than a potato mash would be but significantly better than if I had boiled it.....a keeper of a method I think. I served it with "Creamed" Leeks

Sue
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