This Stuffed Squash Recipe Will Get You Excited for Fall
I am so happy I recently found a recipe that is going to get me all the way through fall and winter this year with several different variations I can make that are easy, delicious, and cozy time and time again. This recipe is once again thanks to the email I look forward to opening every week when I see it in my inbox: “Cook’n Top 10 Recommendations For You”. I am telling you--this thing knows my foodie tastes like no other! It knows I love making easy, (usually) pretty healthy meals for dinner and that I have a sweet tooth! :) This last week it knocked it out of the park by recommending that I make beef stuffed acorn squash and I could not have been happier about the discovery of this recipe!
Basically, you start by roasting acorn squash, scoop the filling out, add a bunch of yummy ingredients like beef and mushrooms, refill your mixture back into the acorn squash, and pop it into the oven again for about five minutes or so until your cheese on top is golden brown and bubbling.
I made the original stuffed squash version from the author of the recipe, TheCleanEatingCouple.com, but of course it is so delicious and popular that she has made many other versions as well. The original version is a delicious sweet/savory combo because it is filled with ground beef, mushrooms, garlic and onions, and you get a bit of sweet from the lovely addition of dried figs. It also gets a bit of crunch from crushed pecans and is seasoned beautifully with fresh or dried sage and rosemary. Finally, you add some shredded white cheddar on top to give it a bit of bite to round it all out. As you can see, these flavors just scream fall and you can’t even imagine how good the leftovers are!
That’s one of my favorite things about this recipe--it’s one of these awesome meals where the leftovers are even better than the original meal! The flavors meld beautifully together and it is such a great, healthy meal to make a few extras and have them for lunch or dinner again for a couple more days. You will look so forward to enjoying this cozy meal again and again. It is also very easy to prep the whole meal ahead of time, saving the final step of heating it through until just before you are ready to eat that evening.
After I made the original version with the fig, I just thought the whole stuffed squash meal was so great and I could see how diverse it could be so I made up a kind of spaghetti and meatball one where I made up some turkey burger, mushrooms, garlic and onions, spaghetti sauce and topped it again with sharp white cheddar cheese. This version turned out fantastic as well.
There are so many great recipes you could come up with for these stuffed acorn squash meals. On this blog, Liz has many variations including one with turkey, mushrooms and crisp apples. She also has a bunch of stuffed squash recipes for spaghetti squash that I can’t wait to try out either! It would also be very easy to think of sweet or savory versions that are meat-free with quinoa and mushrooms or nuts and seeds. The possibilities are endless!
Have you made any stuffed squash recipes before? Did you have any filling ingredients you would recommend for this? I’d also love to know what your favorite leftover meal is for lunch that you look forward to eating the next day. This is my current favorite and I just don’t see how I could ever get sick of it!
2 acorn squash,halved
1 tablespoon la tourangelle walnut oils
1/2 cup onions, diced finely
1/2 tablespoon minced garlic
1 pound ground beef
1 1/2 cups baby bella mushrooms,chopped
1/4 cup dried figs, chopped
1/2 cup chicken stock
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, chopped
1 teaspoon fresh sage, chopped
1 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup pecans, chopped
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
Directions:
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Basically, you start by roasting acorn squash, scoop the filling out, add a bunch of yummy ingredients like beef and mushrooms, refill your mixture back into the acorn squash, and pop it into the oven again for about five minutes or so until your cheese on top is golden brown and bubbling.
I made the original stuffed squash version from the author of the recipe, TheCleanEatingCouple.com, but of course it is so delicious and popular that she has made many other versions as well. The original version is a delicious sweet/savory combo because it is filled with ground beef, mushrooms, garlic and onions, and you get a bit of sweet from the lovely addition of dried figs. It also gets a bit of crunch from crushed pecans and is seasoned beautifully with fresh or dried sage and rosemary. Finally, you add some shredded white cheddar on top to give it a bit of bite to round it all out. As you can see, these flavors just scream fall and you can’t even imagine how good the leftovers are!
That’s one of my favorite things about this recipe--it’s one of these awesome meals where the leftovers are even better than the original meal! The flavors meld beautifully together and it is such a great, healthy meal to make a few extras and have them for lunch or dinner again for a couple more days. You will look so forward to enjoying this cozy meal again and again. It is also very easy to prep the whole meal ahead of time, saving the final step of heating it through until just before you are ready to eat that evening.
After I made the original version with the fig, I just thought the whole stuffed squash meal was so great and I could see how diverse it could be so I made up a kind of spaghetti and meatball one where I made up some turkey burger, mushrooms, garlic and onions, spaghetti sauce and topped it again with sharp white cheddar cheese. This version turned out fantastic as well.
There are so many great recipes you could come up with for these stuffed acorn squash meals. On this blog, Liz has many variations including one with turkey, mushrooms and crisp apples. She also has a bunch of stuffed squash recipes for spaghetti squash that I can’t wait to try out either! It would also be very easy to think of sweet or savory versions that are meat-free with quinoa and mushrooms or nuts and seeds. The possibilities are endless!
Have you made any stuffed squash recipes before? Did you have any filling ingredients you would recommend for this? I’d also love to know what your favorite leftover meal is for lunch that you look forward to eating the next day. This is my current favorite and I just don’t see how I could ever get sick of it!
Beef Stuffed Acorn Squash
Beef Stuffed Acorn Squash is an easy, healthy dinner recipe the whole family will love. Packed with veggies & fall flavor, it’s delicious & simple to make. Author: The Clean Eating Couple Recipe Type: American Total Time: 1 hour
Prep time:
Cook time:
Serving size: 4
Calories per serving: 753
Ingredients:
Cook time:
Serving size: 4
Calories per serving: 753
2 acorn squash,halved
1 tablespoon la tourangelle walnut oils
1/2 cup onions, diced finely
1/2 tablespoon minced garlic
1 pound ground beef
1 1/2 cups baby bella mushrooms,chopped
1/4 cup dried figs, chopped
1/2 cup chicken stock
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, chopped
1 teaspoon fresh sage, chopped
1 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup pecans, chopped
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
Directions:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat baking sheet. Grease baking sheet lightly with walnut oil to prevent squash from sticking.
Slice acorn squash in half, scoop out seeds and place flat on sheet greased with walnut oil. Bake the squash for 20 minutes, until it is tender when pierced with a fork.
While the squash cooks – heat La Tourangelle Walnut Oil in large pan. Sauté onions and garlic until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add in ground beef and cook for an additional 10 minutes until browned.
Once meat is browned, add in chopped mushrooms, dried figs, chicken stock, pecans, herbs, pepper and salt to the pan with the beef. Sauté for an additional 5 minutes.
When the squash is done, remove from the oven + scoop out most of the cooked center, leaving the mostly empty squash ‘boat’ on the baking sheet.
Add the squash filling to the beef/veggie/mushroom mixture in the pan + stir until completely mixed in. Scoop the beef/squash mixture back into the empty squash + top with cheese.
Bake them at 450 for 5-10 minutes until cheese melts, and then broil for 2-3 minutes so the cheesy gets crispy.
Source: thecleaneatingcouple.com
Slice acorn squash in half, scoop out seeds and place flat on sheet greased with walnut oil. Bake the squash for 20 minutes, until it is tender when pierced with a fork.
While the squash cooks – heat La Tourangelle Walnut Oil in large pan. Sauté onions and garlic until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add in ground beef and cook for an additional 10 minutes until browned.
Once meat is browned, add in chopped mushrooms, dried figs, chicken stock, pecans, herbs, pepper and salt to the pan with the beef. Sauté for an additional 5 minutes.
When the squash is done, remove from the oven + scoop out most of the cooked center, leaving the mostly empty squash ‘boat’ on the baking sheet.
Add the squash filling to the beef/veggie/mushroom mixture in the pan + stir until completely mixed in. Scoop the beef/squash mixture back into the empty squash + top with cheese.
Bake them at 450 for 5-10 minutes until cheese melts, and then broil for 2-3 minutes so the cheesy gets crispy.
Source: thecleaneatingcouple.com
Recipe formatted with the Cook'n Recipe Software from DVO Enterprises.
Sources:
- www.flickr.com
- www.pixabay.com
- www.thecleaneatingcouple.com
Mary Richardson
Weekly Newsletter Contributor since 2014
Email the author! mary@dvo.com
