We started with some soft tender squash. We put it into a pot with milk, vanilla, sugar and salt. We pureed the the hot mixture together. We set it into an egg less custard with 0.3% iota and 0.05% kappa carrageenan. When it was set its texture was smooth and tender. It had the texture of firm pie filling. We put a few slices of the squash custard into the CVap set at 55°C. The carrageenan helped the sliced squash keep its shape. The firm texture became melting and soft. When we tried increasing the heat the squash melted into a puddle. The next step was to see if we could capture the soft while making it easy to handle. We cut the custard into rounds. We put the squash into the dehydrator set at 52.5°C. The squash started developing a skin. We flipped the squash to dry the bottom. We flipped the squash one last time to evenly dry the exterior. The total drying time was about 2 hours. We removed the squash from the dehydrator and let them cool. The outside had developed a thin ravioli style skin. The inside was soft and tender. We started heating, watching and eating. The squash was encapsulated in itself. The inside became melting. The warm exterior skin resembled beautifully cooked pasta.
Years Past
