Growing Squash from Grocery Produce

Yeah, Dough9345....you're waaaaaaaaaaaaaay old! LOL!

Butterflychaser,
I love fried pickles!

You're not old Doug, I remember that too.. and I would suggest... DON'T DRINK IT!!!! ... Errrr, I mean, "eat" it. heh heh

Anyone tried fried bananas?

Not me, but I've got a few overly-ripe ones in the freezer right now.. Hmmmm. ;)

speediebean - they fry best when they are firm, but ripe. They taste really good fried.

I've had fried bananas and they ARE good. I tried to fry some a couple of weeks ago and they just became mush. I'll try again sometime.

Grew up in New Orleans. Fried plantains and bananas are a staple, especially on a plate of spaghetti and meatballs/sauce, or red beans and rice.

FRIED PLAINTAINS
If you're frying plantains, buy the blackest ones available -- NOT green plaintains!
Lay them on your countertop and beat the H_ _ L out of them, still in the skins, with a big cooking spoon, just until they soften up.

Peel and slice them on the diagonal, about 1" thick. Fry until golden brown on both sides in a heavy skillet with hot oil, that comes up just to the top of the slices.

Remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel covered bowl. Sprinkle with granulated sugar, and serve as a side dish.

Linda

FRIED BANANAS
Buy Slightly green bananas.
Peel and slice on a diagonal, 1" thick
Dredge slices in all-pourpose flower to coat
Fry in hot oil in a heavy skillet. Oil should come no higher than the top of the banana slices

Continue frying coated slices. Add additional oil as necessary, making sure the oil is hot when you drop the slices in. DO NOT REMOVE THE SLUDGE THAT BUILDING UP IN THE FRYING PAN. Remove browned slices to a bowl. Do not use a paper towel...

Once all the slices are just browned on each side, build a Roux with the remaining sludge in the skillet. Add additional equal parts of flour and cooking oil, and stir constantly until Roux is dark brown, BUT NOT BURNED!. Constant stirring over an medium, even fire. Patience.

Once the Roux is the proper color, slowly pour in as much water as necessary to create a medium-thick sauce. Be careful as you're pouring in the water, as it can bubble up! Stir constantly until sauce is smooth. Add 2 Tbsps. butter, enough granulated sugar to sweeten, and 1/2 tsp. cinnamon to the sauce. Stir in until smooth.

Arrange cooked banana slices on a serving dish. Strain sauce over the cooked bananas. Serve immediately.

Linda

Hi, everyone.

I only discovered this thread this morning. I was hacking into a spaghetti squash just a few days ago. Those squashes have a very hard shell. I have a squash knife that is very sharp, but has seen way better days, a long time ago. I use a mallet and that knife to cut my spaghetti squash in two halves before removing the seeds and microwaving it. As I was cleaning the seeds and fibers, I recognized an odor that reminded me of carving a jack-o-lantern. I wasn't surprised because they're from the same "family". Pumpkin seeds are good roasted, I told myself. My mom always roasted them around Hallowe'en. She said they were good for the kidneys.

As I was throwing the seeds out, I started wondering
a) if you could roast those seeds, and
b) if those seeds would grow if I dried them and planted them.

Spaghetti squashes are on the pricey side. They're heavy and they're sold by the pound. I consider myself lucky when I can buy them for $1.50/pound, or less. It would be nice to grow my own spaghetti squash here in Florida. Being a type 1 diabetic, I don't eat pasta. However, spaghetti squash gets us out of a bind when we have a taste for italian food. It tastes good, too.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained. Next time I hack into one of those spaghetti squashes, I'm going to keep the seeds to roast. I'll also try to start a few seedlings.

Take care, all.
Sylvain.

Linda, thanks for the banana recipe. I'll try it! The sauce sounds yummy too!

When I fry a banana, I choose one that is ripe, but firm. Slice it in half lengthwise. Fry it in small amount of vegetable oil until it is just this side of burnt on both sides.

You do need to be careful when turning them so they don't turn to "mush". They are incredibly sweet when cooked this way!

Slightly green bananas are more firmer, and won't "mush" so easily.

Sylvain., spaghetti squash are O.P. and will grow true to the original.

I am new to vegetable gardening. This spring I have planted some seeds from store bought butternut squash with a view to transplanting them in mid May when the frost has passed. They have come up really nicely except the female flowers are blooming way before the male ones have developed (the males are there, just slow). And some flowers are starting to wilt. (see photos) I am wondering if the problem is with the seed or the conditions? Conditions are as follows.
1. grown in small pots in a warm south facing sunroom
2. used potting soil (tho yesterday I added a sprinkle of coffee grounds in case they are running out of nutrients - also have old comfrey leaves from my garden I plan to add)
3. Keeping the soil moist but not soggy
They are flowering way earlier than I thought they would. I am happy to experiment but I am wondering:
Are the containers too small and forcing early development?
Should I just wait it out and see if they produce more flowers when I transplant to larger pots in the garden?
Might this be a nutrient problem?
or a problem with a too warm room?
Or should I just start again? (I am heading to a local garden centre today with a view to buying butternut squash seed.) thank you for any and all advice - I am new to this but very excited that anything came up out of the soil at all.