Hot Butternut Squash Custard Drink

It’s a chilly, rainy night here.  According to the forecasters, we are in for a wet week since hurricane Sandy is 500 miles across and north east Ohio is in that zone.  Stephen went out to run an errand, and I thought it was the perfect time to try this recipe.

I adapted it from Heavenly Homemakers.

Hot Butternut Squash Custard Drink

3 cups Snowville Creamery whole milk
4 egg yolks, preferably from local eggs
1/3 cup real maple syrup, local
1 cup pureed roasted butternut squash
2 tablespoons arrowroot powder
1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
generous 1/2 teaspoon  ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon double strength vanilla extract

In a medium saucepan, combine milk, egg yolks, maple syrup, squash, arrowroot powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly until mixture begins to thicken.

Remove from heat and add  vanilla. Whisk until combined. Pour into mugs and serve warm.  Serves 4.

We have turned into milk snobs.  We love Snowville Creamery milk.  It’s just good.  I’m sure you could make this with any milk you’d like.  You’ll want whole milk (or a mix of other milk and cream).  I planned ahead and made pancakes with egg whites yesterday.  I saved the yolks for this recipe.  That was a good plan.  Alternatively, I would use the egg whites left over in French toast or a yolkless omelet the next day.  I buy a gallon of local maple syrup each season.  I supplement with more if needed depending on our usage that year.

A week or two ago, I roasted 9 butternut squash in the oven and froze the puree in 2 cup portions.  I used 1 cup in the pancakes yesterday and saved the rest for this recipe.  We did have a few spots in the finished drink where the squash wasn’t 100% smooth.  I’d probably figure out a way to double check it next time.  I’m thinking that I could blend it in the Vitamix or food processor a little longer to ensure smoothness.  I’m sure the pumpkin version is tasty as well, but we happen to have lots of butternut squash on hand.

I bought arrowroot powder at Penzeys a while back, so I had it on hand.  Cornstarch should work as well, but I didn’t try it with that.

We grate our nutmeg as needed, so I always approximate the measurement on the high side.  We generally like the dishes that we make with extra cinnamon, vanilla (hence the double strength) and generous nutmeg.

I liked that it wasn’t heavy and was sweet without being “sickening sweet”.  It was a nice treat.  I wouldn’t make it everyday, mostly because of the “whisking constantly” step, which took a while.  Stephen and I enjoyed a couch date this evening as we enjoyed the drinks..  We resisted the second serving and put some in the fridge.  I’ll be anxious to see how it reheats tomorrow.