- 1 Turkish turban squash, halved and seeded
- 4 eggs
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1 cup dark brown sugar
- 1/2 cup applesauce
- 1/2 cup canola oil
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
- 2 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 cup sweetened dried cranberries (such as Craisins®)
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
- Place turban squash halves cut-side in a baking dish. Pour a small amount of water into the bottom of the dish.
- Bake in the preheated oven until very soft, about 1 hour. Pour out any moisture that accumulated in the cavity of the squash. Let cool until easily handled, 10 to 15 minutes.
- Scoop squash flesh into a large bowl. Mash until smooth. Transfer to gallon-sized freezer bags and refrigerate, 8 hours to overnight.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour two 9×5-inch loaf pans.
- Combine 4 cups mashed squash, eggs, white sugar, dark brown sugar, applesauce, oil, vanilla extract, and ginger in a large bowl; beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until well blended, about 3 minutes.
- Whisk all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves together in a separate bowl. Stir into the squash mixture with a wooden spoon until just blended. Fold dried cranberries into the batter.
- Divide batter between the prepared loaf pans.
- Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 1 hour.