Fall weather heralds a season of delicious hard winter squash which quickly fill up supermarkets and homes for aesthetic and toothsome reasons alike. Cheap, versatile and delicious, winter squash make a great choice for feeding the family and are great for a variety of different recipes. Unfortunately, the immense selection of different squash can be quite intimidating to those who are new to them and can make even the most adventurous cook pass them by. This list will help you make sense of all the different squash available and get you started on your cooking endeavors.

1. Cinderella (Rogue Vif d'Estampes)

These heirloom pumpkins are strikingly beautiful, with deep orange and bright red skins. These grow quite large and are great for pies and roasting with sweet flesh and great yield, but they are also great as temporary ornamentals as these hardy pumpkins can last several months before cooking. They get their nickname “Cinderella” from their beautiful ribbed outsides that are reminiscent of Cinderella's transformed pumpkin carriage and are often so beautiful that you might have a hard time getting around to cooking them!

2. Acorn Squash

Acorn squash are quite distinctive with their acorn shape and are great for stuffing and roasting once cut in half. Popular as a main dish in vegetarian meals, the flesh is yellow, nutty and sweet. This is a great squash that is available year round and easy to cut and cook for those of you just starting out.

3. Buttercup Squash

Often curiously square shaped, this squash is semi-sweet with nutty, orange-yellow flesh and is ideal for stews, soups and curries. It is similar to kobocha in flavor, but more moist inside and not quite as dense which is why its best in liquid-based recipes.

4. Butternut Squash

Another delicious squash that is often available year round, butternut squash is one of the sweetest squash out there. Its flesh is delicious and not very stringy which makes it ideal for creamy purees and casseroles. The sweetness lends itself to dessert like dishes and nutty soups, and its thin skin makes it easier to handle and peel versus some of the hardier squash out there.

5. Delicata Squash

Delicata squash are beautiful with creamy yellow skin and green and orange stripes. They are easy to cut or peel (the skin is so thin that it's actually edible), and the elongated shape makes it ideal for stuffed “boat” recipes or for cutting into circles, seeds and all. One of the more flavorful and sweet squash, these are definitely a cheap fall favorite you need to get your hands on.

6. Blue Hokkaido Squash

Sporting a unique shade of blue-grey, these Japanese squash are globe shaped (sometimes flattened) and have a drier, denser flesh than other squash. This quality makes them perfect for recipes where you don't want your squash to fall apart. The flavor is mellow and nutty, which is great for adapting to pretty much any recipe and their hardy nature lets them last for months.

7. Red Kuri Squash

Petite and beautiful, these squash also have skin thin enough to eat. While not as sweet as butternut or delicata, the flesh is still more than sweet enough and accompanied with complex nutty flavors. It's orange flesh is reminiscent of a typical pumpkin but without the ridges and typically is much smaller, a shape that lends itself to stuffing or roasting.

8. White Pumpkin

Often used as beautiful ornamentals, white pumpkins are deceptively orange on the inside but have a beautiful creamy white exterior. Modern heirloom varieties like lumina taste quite similar to pie pumpkins and a great for baking or making casseroles. Their sweet flesh has a creamy texture that is great for pureeing into pie.

So there you have it! Broaden your cooking horizons and take advantage of these fall and winter squash to make your home feel a little more cozy this season. Try baking, roasting, or including these squash in your next soup--and don't forget to toast the seeds!