I love shopping at Costco with my parents because they discover completely different products than what I normally find. A case in point was this delightful three count bag of Honeynut Squash that my Mom found in the produce section.
I hade never heard about honeynut squash and was really curious to learn more about it. I am a big fan of squash so any chance to try something new in that family sounds like a good time to me 🙂
What Is Honeynut Squash?
Honeynut is a relatively new variety of winter squash that first entered the US market in 2015. The Honeynut was developed as a cross breed between the Butternut and Buttercup squash varieties.
The squash starts out with a green flesh that turns orange as it ripens. Once the squash is fully ripe and will start to wrinkle. You should cook the ripe squash as soon as possible as Honeynut does not have a long shelf life.
The general marketing pitch behind this new variety is that it is better than butternut because:
- Sweeter and more flavorful
- Smaller size is more manageable
Think of a Honeynut squash as a smaller, tastier version of a Butternut squash.
I really love Butternut squash but rarely buy it as I am the only person in my house that enjoys it and eating my way through a whole Butternut by myself gets monotonous. I really like that this is a miniature version of a squash that I enjoy.
Cooking Instructions
Cooking these squash is incredibly simple.
- Slice the squash in half and scoop out the seeds.
- Brush the flesh with oil.
- Season the squash with salt and pepper
- Roast at 400F for 25-30 minutes until tender.
My Mom followed the standard directions and the squash turned out beautifully! The squash was tender, sweet and super flavorful. I really enjoyed the convenient size as half of a squash was a perfect portion.
We had the squash as a side dish with some rice, fried chicken and gravy and everything was absolutely delicious (Thanks, Mom!).
One of the supposed benefits of Honeynut squash is that its skin is more edible than Butternut. I tried eating the skin and, while I agree that it is edible, it is not something that I enjoyed.
The packaging suggests some other seasoning variations that include:
- Cumin and Chili Powder
- Rosemary and Garlic
- Sesame Oil and Tamari
They also have a couple of suggestions for using the squash as a dessert including:
- Seasoning with Cinnamon and Honey
- Pouring on some Maple Syrup and adding a scoop of ice cream
Calories and Nutrition
A single serving is defined as 1/4 of a squash and has the following calories and nutritional information.
- Calories: 40
- Fat: 0g
- Cholesterol: 0g
- Sodium: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 11g
- Protein: 1g
You will end up eating two servings of the squash so go ahead and double up the calorie count to 80.
The squash is an excellent source of Vitamin A, Vitamin C and Potassium.
You Can Substitute Honeynut Squash for Butternut Squash
You can use Honeynut as a direct replacement for Butternut for any recipe that peels the squash and cuts it into cubes. The flavor profiles are slightly different but the overall notes of savory sweetness are the same.
For any recipe that calls for Roasting or Stuffing a Butternut squash you can use a Honeynut but will need to adjust the cooking times downward due to the smaller size of the Honeynut.
Price
We were able to get the three count bag of Honeynut squash at Costco for $4.99. You get two servings per squash so this works out to a cost of $0.83 per serving.
This squash is not widely available due to it being relatively new in the market and having a shorter storage life. As such it is hard to find comparative prices at other stores.
That being said, $0.83 per serving for such a delicious and convenient squash looks like a perfect bargain to me.
