Inspired by this zucchini, yogurt and mint dip, this squash and cashew dip is easy and delicious. The best way to describe it is as a chunky hummus.

Because I’m not a big milk drinker, I’ve been experimenting with making my own cashew milk. The only reason I would buy milk is for my coffee and even the smallest bottle goes bad before I can finish it. Bulk cashews are an awesome zero waste alternative and it’s easier to control the quantity of milk. Anyone ever freeze cashew milk? There are a couple small jars of cashew milk hanging out in the freezer right now and I’m anxious to see how it works out.

My food processor is pretty pathetic and isn’t able to pulverize the cashews so there’s a lot of pulp left over. It’s fun to experiment with the cashew pulp and it often ends up as a ricotta cheese substitute. This time around the cashew pulp was substitute for yogurt. If cashew pulp isn’t a staple in your pantry (weirdo) then just put some cashew, or another nut you like, in the food processor first with a little water and pulse until it’s as smooth as you want it.

Combine the cashews, some sautéed yellow squash and garlic, a big handful of dill, a good glug of olive oil and salt and pepper. Mix it all up in a hopefully not pathetic food processer and voila! Equal parts cashew pulp to squash seemed to do the trick but you should experiment with whatever proportions seem right to you.

Add chopped up veggies from the garden and some good bread for dipping. Make sure you spend more time arranging an Instagram worthy plate and picking the right filter for the photos than you did on the recipe. This way everyone will know that you’re creative AF.

This summer I took an amazing class through the Vermont Community Garden Network. Twice a week, we met in the most beautiful community garden and tend to our plots. Our teacher is an outstanding individual– so thoughtful, intelligent and knowledgeable. She struck a really great balance between holding our hands and encouraging us to do things on our own. As a first time gardener, it has been really helpful to have someone to turn to with questions. Also the community created in a class setting draws me back to the garden each week. Sadly, our class has ended and we recently “graduated”. Graduation was a lovely gathering of students, family and friends. There was a delicious spread of food made from the tasty treats harvested from our gardens. It really was a very sweet way of celebrating this wonderful experience.

As anyone who has grown summer squash before will tell you, those sons of bitches pop up out of no where. On a Tuesday there were no zucchinis in my garden, not even little baby ones, and on the following Thursday there was one the size of my head. How the hell do they grow so fast?!

A classmate harvested their 3^rd giant yellow squash and decided it was just too much for them. Since I don’t have yellow squash in my garden, I snatched it up like the greedy little asshole that I am. I was determined to use it in new and creative ways so the enormous quantity of squash I was destined to eat did not become boring.

Over the next couple of weeks I’ll share some recipe inspiration for yellow squash 3 different ways.

Are you swimming in squash? I’d love to hear some of your favorite recipes!