I get it. I’m a healthy lifestyle writer. I should be obsessing over squash right now. I should be dreaming about it. I should have another squash recipe to share each night after dinner and each morning after breakfast.

Well, guess what? I don’t.

It’s the middle of October, and already I’ve been squashed out.

I’ve had pumpkin smoothies, butternut squash savory oats, pumpkin pie flavored kamut flakes, butternut squash soup, spelt pasta with spinach and butternut squash cream sauce, spaghetti squash primavera, Fage with pumpkin and honey…and I am so over it.

Something about the mushy sweetness is just too much for me this year. Last year, I happily squashed like mad from October until March. Never did I see a butternut I couldn’t fall in love with. But this year…this year? Yech!

Maybe it’s the fact that I haven’t spotted adequate acorn squash (my preferred squash) at the farmer’s market yet. Or maybe I’m just over sweet after months of berries, stone fruit and melons. Who knows? But the only squash meals and snacks that are doing it for me are the savory. Like these:

Pumpkin Hummus. There’s the lazy way, and the not so lazy way. The lazy way is to take two tablespoons of Sabra hummus and two tablespoons of canned pumpkin and mix with a spoon. Proceed to dip crackers and veggies and lick bowl clean. Mmmmm. If you’re less lazy, combine one 15 ounce can of chickpeas, ¾ cup of canned pumpkin, one or two tablespoons of tahini (depending upon your personal taste), the juice of half a lemon, and your favorite spices (I like salt, pepper and cumin) in a food processor and process until smooth. Proceed with dipping as discussed above. And if you’re actually a productive human being, do it with two cups of cooked chickpeas and top with pepitas.

Roasted Spaghetti Squash Seeds. Yes, I am totally sick of spaghetti squash. However, I still like the seeds. And yes, to the best of my knowledge, you can do this with just about any squash seed. Instructions: (1) cut squash in half; (2) remove seeds and other mushy stuff surrounding seeds; (3) cook squash as desired or set aside (who needs the squash?); (4) rinse mushy stuff off of seeds; (5) dry seeds (paper towels are fine); (6) toss in to baking sheet with olive oil, salt, pepper and paprika (lots of paprika! smoked is even better!); (7) cook in oven preheated to 400 degrees, stirring every three to five minutes until done. 10 minutes should do it.

Butternut Squash in Soups. I am a huge fan of soup. Last week I made a large pot of some pretty lackluster lentil soup. I’m not sure why it came out less than stellar, as I am pretty sure that I followed my usual technique. I may not have added enough veggies. I may have added too much water. But regardless, I managed to salvage this soup by adding a can of butternut squash, stirring and reheating. Now it’s Butternut Squash Lentil Soup, and it’s delicious.