YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Delicata Squash in Santa Cruz

The delicata is a small, lovely squash that looks gorgeous and tastes a little bit sweet. One of my favorite features of the delicata is that, unlike most other squash, the skin of the delicata is edible (and delicious)! 

The first time I ate this particular dish was while celebrating the wedding of dear friends who live in Santa Cruz. In keeping with an old family custom, and in order to easily identify the affiliation of each guest, the guests of one partner were invited to wear gold while those of the other partner wore cream. Continue reading


YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Wedding Delicata Squash

I was introduced to delicata squash some years ago while celebrating the wedding of friends in Santa Cruz. Delicata is a small, lovely squash that looks gorgeous and tastes the same. It’s a little bit sweet, and a little bit not. Plus, unlike most other squashes, you can eat the skin of the delicata! 

This was a wedding to remember. In keeping with an old family custom, and so that we could easily identify the affiliation of each of the guests, those invited by one partner were instructed to wear gold while those invited by the other were instructed to wear white. We were members of team white, and I was thrilled to have an opportunity to wear a knitted cream dress that had been hanging in my closet for a long time. Once we arrived at the outdoor venue, we all joined together in a sea of yellow, gold, beige, cream, and white to form a new, beautiful, extended family. It was very moving, and most memorable. The simple beauty of this recipe will always remind me of the love and joy we helped to create on that beautiful October day.  Continue reading


YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Yellow Squash Crockpot Soup

This soup, perfect for fall days and nights, cooks up beautifully in a crock pot. If you put together all the ingredients in the morning, the house will smell heavenly all day, and the soup will be ready to eat when dinnertime comes. On the other hand, if evening time works better for prepping the ingredients, the house will smell heavenly when you wake up, and the soup will be ready at lunchtime and also keep til dinnertime. Continue reading