Autumn Stuffed Acorn Squash - a warm and hearty squash stuffed with carrots, celery, quinoa, white beans and organic chicken sausage. We've stuffed this squash with lots of fall goodness!
The cool walks of Fall
Today was a beautiful Colorado fall day—55 degrees, sunny and gorgeous. We went for a walk over lunch (our best time to chat) to take in all the beauty of our state before the cold winds of winter roll in. As we were walking, I could hear leaves crunching under our feet and crickets chirping in the bushes.
We walked past the nearby lake with the most beautiful view of the snow-capped mountains with reds and golds all around. It made me remember how much I love fall. It's my favorite season—the warm colors, comforting smells (think chai and pumpkin) and of course the food. Fall foods are the BEST—hearty and delicious!
With my favorite season in mind, I wanted to share one of my favorite fall dishes - Stuffed Acorn Squash!
This dish is hearty, veggie-filled and super yummy. It’s filled with carrots, celery, quinoa, white beans, chicken sausage and cranberries. It makes for a stunning, but easy weeknight dinner that’s great for dinner guests.
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Ready to make this autumn-inspired dish? Let’s do it!
1 - Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F and prep the squash. Wash and cut each squash in half, remove the squash seeds and guts, but save the seeds for a delicious snack - roasted squash seeds! Coat a lined baking sheet with olive oil, place squash flesh side down, and roast for 25-30 minutes. Once cooked, set aside.
2 - Cook quinoa: In a medium pot, combine broth and quinoa, bring to boil, and cook until tender, about 20 minutes.
3 - Now to cook the veggies. Heat olive oil in medium skillet, add garlic, onion, carrots, celery, and season with salt and pepper. Cook until tender, then set aside.
4 - Cook sausage: Remove chicken sausage casings and cook in emptied pan. Break the sausage into small pieces or crumbles. Once the sausage is cooked, add the veggies back to the pan, then add beans, quinoa, dried cranberries, parsley and sage. Heat everything for 2-3 minutes.
4 - Now we’re ready to stuff the squash! On the baking sheet, place the squash flesh side up and fill with stuffing, garnish with Parmesan cheese (the cheese will get nice and crispy). As you’ll likely have extra stuffing, I always like to overfill the squash :-). Bake until the cheese is melted. After baking about 10 minutes, remove the stuffed squash and let it cool for at least 5 minutes. Enjoy!
Autumn Stuffed Acorn Squash: Tips, Tricks and Tools
A good chef’s knife is key to safely cutting the squash.
You’ll also need a baking sheet and a reusable silicone mat makes clean-up a breeze and reduces waste!
Save those squash seeds and make roasted squash seeds. You can even put them on your Autumn Stuffed Acorn Squash!
Don’t be afraid to eat the acorn squash skin. It is edible, provides additional nutrients like fiber, and tastes great, especially when it’s roasted. If you don’t eat all the skin, compost the rest!
Responsible Ingredients: I try to source local and organic ingredients when possible. I love supporting local farmers and find that local foods generally taste better too!
Recipe variations: Get creative with this stuffed squash recipe. It’s a great base to use up those almost-bad veggies. Use butternut squash instead of acorn squash, add some spinach or kale. Don’t have chicken sausage? Use tempeh, or even grass-fed ground beef.
Make vegan: Use a non-meat alternative like tempeh or seitan. And use vegan cheese or nutritional yeast instead of Parmesan.
We hope you love this scrumptious Autumn Stuffed Acorn Squash!
It’s hearty, warm, screams fall and is perfect for a stunning weeknight dinner.
It’s also great for cleaning out the fridge - feel free to toss in any veggies lying around - add spinach or kale, use up that fennel or add in some beets.
Love this scrumptious autumn-inspired recipe? Check out our other delicious Autumn recipes like this Carrot Ginger Soup and Epic CranTurkey Sandwich.
Did you enjoy this Autumn Stuffed Acorn Squash as much as we do?
Comment below! And rate the recipe to let us know how it turned out! Not cooking today? Save this Autumn Stuffed Acorn Squash for later by pinning it to your Main Dish Board and make sure to tag us at The Crooked Carrot Instagram to show us your One-Skillet Lemon Mediterranean Orzo creations!
📖 Recipe
Autumn Stuffed Acorn Squash
Ingredients
- 2 medium acorn squash halved, seeds removed (seeds removed (save the seeds for a snack!)
- 1 cup quinoa rinsed
- 2 cups broth use homemade!
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- ¼ onion diced
- 3 carrots chopped
- 3 celery stalks chopped
- salt & pepper to taste
- ½ lb organic chicken sausage
- 1 15 ounce can white beans drained and rinsed
- ½ cup dried cranberries
- ¼ cup parsley chopped
- 1 tablespoon sage chopped
- Parmesan cheese for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F
- Prep squash: drizzle olive oil on rimmed baking sheet, place squash flesh side down on the sheet, roast for 25-30 minutes. Once cooked, set aside.
- Cook quinoa: combine broth and quinoa in a medium pot, bring to boil, cook until tender (about 20 minutes)
- Sauté: Heat large skillet over medium heat, add olive oil. Once hot, add garlic, onion, carrots and celery, season with salt and pepper. Cook until tender, about 10 minutes, set aside in a bowl.
- Cook sausage: Add chicken sausage (casings removed) to emptied pan, break into crumbles and cook thoroughly. Once cooked, add veggie mix back to pan, add beans, quinoa, dried cranberries, parsley and sage. Heat the mixture for 2-3 minutes.
- Bake: On baking sheet, place squash flesh side up and fill with stuffing, garnish with Parmesan cheese, bake for 10 minutes or until cheese is melted. Remove from oven, let cool 5-7 minutes, serve and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
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