Process Paragraph - Extra Credit

Author's Note: This is an extra credit paragraph that I did for my COM 105 class in which I received a 3/5 or an B+ letter grade on (at this point I already have a 100% in the class so the extra points will be added to my Research Paper if I need it).

Process Paragraph – Extra Credit

In making Nathan’s Fabulous Autumn Butternut Squash “Pie”, some preparation and a handful of ingredients are needed, but in the end it is all worth it. First, the ingredients you will need are one butternut squash, 1tbsp. of brown sugar, ¼ tsp. salt, which is optional, a pinch of white pepper, which is also optional, three to four normal-sized Jonathan apples, 1 ½ tablespoons of shortening or margarine, ¼ cup of sugar, though I replaced this with Sugar In The Raw Premium Hawaiian Turbinado Sugar, which made it all the more awesome, three single serving boxes of cornflakes, which is equivalent to about 2 ½ cups, ½ cup of chopped pecans, 2 tbsp. of butter and ½ cup of brown sugar, I also substituted Splenda brand brown sugar for this as well. First, cut the butternut squash and scrape out the seeds. Once you have completed that, either steam the butternut squash for thirty minutes or bake upside-down on foil at 300 degrees until tender. You can also microwave the butternut squash and I found that a combination of baking upside-down at 300 degrees for thirty minutes then microwaving for an additional 2 and ¼ minutes, gets the butternut squash sufficiently tender enough to work with, but be careful and let it cool down a little for a few minutes since it will be extremely hot! Once it is ready to work with, scrape out the pulp of the butternut squash and mash or beat smooth. Season the top of the mashed butternut squash pulp with cinnamon, though the original recipe called for one tablespoon of brown sugar and a ¼ teaspoon of salt and a pinch of white pepper, I found the change I did made the overall product much more tasty. Now, gather your Jonathan apples and core and slice them, but don’t peel. The trick to this is to slice them up into small pieces instead of wedges and I found that doing this created a much better base for which everything else in the recipe builds upon. Next, heat one and a half tablespoons of shortening or margarine in a small skillet, you can also just use normal cooking spray, which is what I used, Pam’s Canola Oil variety, and get a good layer saturated onto the skillet. When the skillet is ready, add your apples and sprinkle one-fourth a cup of sugar on them, or in my case a one-fourth cup of the Sugar In The Raw Premium Hawaiian Turbinado Sugar, but any Turbinado sugar will do. Cover the skillet, in my case I used a 9-inch, 8-quart, round, baking casserole dish, and simmer until they are tender. While the apples are simmering you can start working on the nutty topping, crush your cornflakes coarsely, then add a half of a cup of chopped pecans, the two tablespoons of melted butter and the half a cup of brown sugar. Finally, once the apples are nice and tender and everything else is finished being prepared, spread the fried apples into an 8 inch square or 9 inch round casserole (1 ½ quart) dish. Spoon the butternut squash pulp evenly over it. Last but not least sprinkle the nutty topping over that and bake the work of art at 325-350 degrees until the nutty topping is a light brown, or a bit darker if you like it extra crunchy (usually 30-45 minutes, give or take). Enjoy Nathan’s Fabulous Autumn Butternut Squash “Pie” with friends and watch their warm reactions as they devour into it.