The Flavors of Africa at Your Summer Table

Words by Justin Butts Recipe by Kayla Butts Photos by Rachel Benevides

Food is more than flavor. Food is culture, tradition, and memory. The taste of a dish can take one back to their childhood, or even to a distant land.

For South Africans living in Central Texas, the gem squash is a taste of home. Gem squash are small and round with dark green skin and golden flesh. South Africans call them cannonball squash.

We learned of the deep connection South Africans feel for gem squash when a friend gave us a few seeds and asked us to grow this taste of his homeland. Without realizing it, we became one of the few farms in America to offer these wonderful squash.

Gem squash are native to Mexico, but they traveled to South Africa on Spanish trading ships in the 1500s, where they became a staple crop. In South Africa, natives grow up feasting on gem squash. They are served at family meals, at celebrations, as snacks, and street vendors fry, bake, or stuff them. These little ‘gems’ are everywhere.

But, gem squash are nearly impossible to find in America. Our farm website has received thousands of hits by expatriate South Africans looking for seeds or for a shipment of carefully packaged cannonball squash. At long last, our friends at Baker Creek Seed Company in Mansfield, Missouri, have started carrying the seeds. Now, gem squash are available to everyone stateside.

To celebrate the coveted gem squash, a zesty Moroccan filling, featuring grass-fed beef, cinnamon, dates, ginger, and red quinoa, is stuffed into the golden centers of the squash. These half-squashes make a gorgeous main course presentation. For an alternate filling recipe, try ground pork, apples, sage, walnuts, and melted Gruyere.

However, a gem squash is not necessary for this recipe. Any favorite winter squash will do: butternut, acorn, or striped green cushaw, whatever takes you home.

But for our friends from South Africa, there is no substitute. The gem squash takes them back to the traffic noises of Johannesburg through the open window, to the throngs of children laughing and kicking a soccer ball in the dusty alley, to the street parades with dancers in colorful costumes and singers rhythmically chanting, to the patchwork fields of crops at the edge of the city, and to the distant hills where lions crouch in the yellow grass. Gem squash awaken all of these sights, sounds, and flavors. Food is culture. Food is a memory. Wherever you are from, food is home.

South African Gem Squash Stuffed with Moroccan Beef

Makes: 4 servings
Prep time: 20 min.
Cook time: 1 hour

Ingredients:
1 winter squash, halved with seeds and pith removed
1 T. butter
½ c. red quinoa
1 c. chicken broth
1 c. walnuts, chopped
1 T. olive oil
1 pound ground beef
½ medium onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 dates, pitted and chopped
2 t. cinnamon (or more to taste)
½ t. cumin
½ t. ground ginger (or 1 generous t. grated, fresh ginger)
Salt and red pepper to taste
1 large bunch fresh mint (spearmint recommended)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400°F. Place squash flesh side up on a baking dish, and sprinkle with desired amount of salt. Divide butter in half and place inside squash cavity. Add about 1” of water to the bottom of the baking dish. Bake for approximately 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until fork tender.

About 20 minutes into roasting the squash, place chicken broth and quinoa into a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring mixture to a boil, cover, and reduce heat to low. Cook for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Strain to remove any additional broth, as needed.

In a large sauté pan, cook walnuts over medium heat. Stir walnuts frequently to prevent burning and cook for 3-5 minutes, until fragrant. Remove walnuts and set to the side. Add oil and onion to the pan, cooking for 2 minutes until onion turns translucent. Add remaining ingredients to the onion mixture and cook an additional 7-10 minutes until ground beef is cooked thoroughly. Add prepared quinoa and reserved walnuts.
Fill squash cavity with quinoa-beef mixture and enjoy.

This recipe lends itself to substitutions, so play around with the variety of winter squash or ancient grain. Ground lamb or apple-infused sausage also make lovely stand-ins for ground beef.

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