For the Garnish
1 tablespoon finely chopped crystallized
ginger
Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
Place the squash halves face down on a bak
ing sheet and bake 40 minutes. Remove and let
cool. Scoop out 2 cups of the flesh for this rec
ipe and freeze the rest for future use.
While the squash is cooking, prepare the
crust. Process the figs in a food processor for
a few seconds, add the ginger snaps, and con
tinue processing until the mixture clumps to
gether in a sticky ball. Don’t process too long
or the cookies will lose their texture. Press the
crust mixture into the bottom and up the sides
of a lightly greased, high-sided, 7-inch spring
form pan. Dip your fingers into a bowl of cold
water to alleviate any stickiness.
To finish the filling , sprinkle the gelatin over
the water in a small saucepan and allow to
soften for 1 minute. Warm over low heat, stir
ring, about 3 minutes until the gelatin is com
pletely dissolved. Place the squash, gelatin
mixture, and remaining filling ingredients in
the food processor and whiz about 2 minutes
or until smooth. Pour the fi lling into the pre
pared crust, pop it into the refrigerator, and
chill about 3 hours or until set.
To serve, unmold the cake onto a platter and
slice with a warm knife. Garnish each piece
with some crystallized ginger.
Per serving : 181 calories, 2 g fat, 1 g saturated fat (5%
calories from saturated fat), 36 g carbohydrate, 7 g
protein, 3 g dietary fiber, 192 mg sodium. Exchanges:
1 Carbohydrate, 1 Lean Meat
SQUASH (WINTER) • 243