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acorn squash
acorn squash
Photo by Stefanie Trepper for Spoon University
Recipes

This Stuffed Acorn Squash Is Perfect For The Holiday Table

Spoon University Placeholder Avatar Stefanie Trepper

The autumn months bring the jewels of beautiful winter squashes to the market. They are attractive in and of themselves and extremely versatile to cook with.  You may be familiar with some popular squash varieties currently in season, such as the sugar pumpkin, butternut squash, delicata squash, and spaghetti squash. My personal favorite, the acorn squash, is my automatic go-to for quick, easy, and healthy meals in the fall. This recipe is flexible enough to accommodate special diets because you can easily substitute alternative ingredients. With the holidays right around the corner, stuffed acorn squash is a delicious accompaniment to your holiday table. All the while becoming a staple for your winter cooking repertoire because it is suitable for almost all diets. 

Epicurean versatility aside, there is a lot of upside to making acorn squash a frequent part of your diet.  Acorn squash is high in B vitamins, as well as vitamins A and C, potassium, and magnesium. It is also an excellent source of fiber, and if stored properly, it can last for about a month, which will stretch your dollar if you can find acorn squash on sale. 

Typically green and orange in color, acorn squash, which is literally acorn-shaped, can stand alone as a main dish but also pair well with a multitude of ingredients as a side dish. Seasonal herbs, such as rosemary and sage, as well as seasonal fruits, such as apples, are natural flavor complements that enhance the slightly nutty flavor of the squash. When cooked, acorn squash becomes a bit sweeter, which lends itself to fall flavors so well.  These flavors can be enjoyed together in a soup, salad, or stuffed inside the squash itself. The latter option is my go-to favorite.  

This recipe serves only as a blueprint. Feel free to experiment with different ingredients and flavors. Add quinoa for added protein. For a vegetarian or vegan option, omit the sausage and substitute it with chickpeas. For extra richness, add your cheese of choice on the top of the stuffing before you bake it, or switch out the toasted pine nuts for walnuts for a different crunchy element. The world is your oyster, but perhaps you should leave those out of this recipe.

Stuffed Acorn Squash
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Stuffed Acorn Squash

Difficulty:BeginnerPrep time: 45 minutesCook time: 15 minutesTotal time:1 hour Servings:4 servings

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Trim the top off the garlic bulb and place it on aluminum foil cut side up. Drizzle with a teaspoon of olive oil and wrap the garlic with the foil. Roast for 45 to 60 minutes or until the bulbs are golden brown and soft. Set aside to cool. Increase the oven temperature to 375°.
  2. Cut the acorn squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds and fibers. Rub the cut sides of the squash with one tablespoon of olive oil and sprinkle them with salt and pepper. Bake cut side down for 15 minutes or until a knife can easily be inserted into the squash. Set aside to cool.
  3. Remove the sausage from the casing and place it into a medium pan. Break it up into crumbles with a wooden spoon, and cook it until it is slightly brown and cooked through.  Remove the sausage from the pan and place it into a large bowl. 
  4. Next, slice the onion and add two tablespoons of olive oil to the pan. Cook the onions until they are soft and slightly caramelized. You will notice the color begins to brown.
  5. Wipe the mushrooms free of dirt and chop them into a medium-sized dice. Add the mushrooms to the onions, along with the thyme and the sage. Cook until they are just cooked through. Add the contents of the pan to the sausage in the bowl.
  6. Add the chopped parsley to the bowl and mix the ingredients together until combined. Squeeze the roasted garlic into the mixture in the bowl, and with clean hands, coat the ingredients with the roasted garlic.
  7. Toast the pine nuts in the pan until fragrant and slightly brown.  Add them to the mixture in the bowl along with the diced apples and maple syrup, and mix until they are fully incorporated. 
  8. Fill each squash half with the filling and place them on a foil-lined sheet pan. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes until the ingredients are warmed through. If the top begins to get too brown during cooking, you can cover the squash with foil for the remainder of the cooking time. 

Notes

  • This can be served with sautéed spinach or a simple green salad as a main dish.
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Stefanie Trepper
Stefanie Trepper is a freelance contributor to Spoon University in New York City, where she is a recipe tester and developer.

As a culinary student, she focused on developing nutritious, budget-friendly, and adaptable recipes to accommodate various diets and food allergies. She is committed to sourcing healthy, local, and seasonal foods and is a contributor and volunteer at her local organic cooperative community garden. Stefanie studied in Provence, France, where she learned about sustainable farming and cooking practices. During her study in France, Stefanie developed relationships with local farmers and purveyors and utilized seasonal, locally sourced foods. Concurrently, she worked in a restaurant, which earned a green Michelin star for sustainability under a two Michelin-starred chef. Stefanie has previously worked as both an educator and an administrator and used food and cooking to bridge cultural connections. A graduate of Colby College, she is passionate about environmental studies and earned a B.A. in Art History. She also holds a Master's Degree from The Bank Street College of Education and an advanced leadership certificate from Harvard University.

In her free time, Stefanie enjoys traveling, learning the Italian language, entertaining friends for dinner dates, and spending time with her husband and two children. She also enjoys listening to her favorite true crime podcasts and playing with her two rescued cats. Stefanie is a horror movie buff and considers Halloween (1978) one of the best horror movies of all time. A lover of New York City, Stefanie loves exploring new neighborhoods, perusing ethnic markets, and finding new dishes and cuisines to replicate at home.