Stuffed Acorn Squash

Alright, we’re back onto squash...because Katie loves squash. This recipe is very filling and is easily a complete dinner on it’s own. The warm notes of the curry powder are perfectly balanced against the sweetness of the squash and apple. We typically use ground beef in this recipe, but you can easily make it vegetarian or vegan by swapping in black beans for the ground beef. Check the notes at the end of the recipe for the substitutions.

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

• 2 acorn squash

• 1 tablespoons olive oil, plus a little extra for drizzling

• 3/4 lb. ground beef (preferably 80/20)*

• 1 tablespoon butter

• 1 onion, diced

• 4-5 stalks celery, peeled and diced

• 1 cup cooked rice (choose your preferred type; we typically go with basmati rice or wild rice)

• 1 apple, cored and chopped (peeled, if you like)

• 1/4 cup sunflower seeds

• 2 tablespoons curry powder

• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne (optional, depending on the heat of your curry powder)

• 4 tablespoons brown sugar

• 1 egg

• Kosher salt

• Fresh ground black pepper

For Panko topping (optional):

• 1 cup Panko bread crumbs

• 1 tablespoon butter

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Cut each acorn squash in half and remove seeds. Add about 1/4” water to a 9” x 13” pan and place the squash halves into the pan, cut side down. Cover with foil and roast in the oven for about 30 minutes, until the squash is tender. Remove the squash from the pan and drain the water. Set aside.

While the squash roasts, add a drizzle of olive oil to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef to the skillet. Crumble and cook until browned. Remove from the pan to a large bowl and pour off any excess grease.

Add the remaining one tablespoon of olive oil and butter to the skillet. Once melted, add the onion and celery. Season with a bit of salt and pepper. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the apple, curry powder, and cayenne to the skillet. Cook for at least another 10 minutes, until the apple, onion, and celery are tender.

Remove the apple, onion, and celery mixture from the skillet to the large bowl with the browned ground beef. Add the cooked rice, sunflower seeds, and brown sugar to the bowl. Stir well to combine.

When the squash is done roasting, use a spoon to scrap out some of the squash - leaving about 1/3” of squash in the acorn squash shell. Add the scraped squash into the ground beef mixture. Mix to combine and taste for seasoning. Adjust with salt and pepper as needed.

Beat the contents of the egg in a small bowl and fold into the squash mixture. Place the squash shells back into the roasting pan, cut side up. Spoon the mixture evenly into the squash shells. You’ll have a bit of the filling, so it will likely form a mound over the shell (as pictured).**

Optional: If you’re topping with Panko bread crumbs, melt the additional tablespoon of butter and combine with the bread crumbs. Carefully place about a quarter cup of the bread crumbs on top of each stuffed squash shells. Leave the bread crumbs off for a gluten free version, or make sure to use gluten free bread crumbs.

Increase the oven temperature to 375°F. Roast the stuffed squash shells until the mixture is heated through and golden brown, about 10-15 minutes.

Notes

Make it Vegetarian/Vegan

*If you’d like to make a vegetarian version, skip the ground beef and use 1 (15 oz.) can (about 1.5 cups) of cooked/canned black beans instead. Drain and rinse the beans. Once the squash is started in the oven, simply begin with the 1 tablespoon of olive oil and butter with the onion and celery. Add the black beans into the skillet with the apple, curry, and cayenne.

To make a vegan version, follow the directions above for incorporating the black beans in place of ground beef. Additionally, simply use olive oil in place of butter (equal amount substituted in). While I like to add the egg into the filling mixture to bring it all together, the egg can also easily be omitted with out losing much.

Extra Filling

**If you decide that the squash shells are absolutely full and you still have some extra filling, it’s great on its own for lunch the following day. The extra filling does have raw egg, so make sure to heat it thoroughly before consumption. I usually reheat it in the microwave - microwaving it in 30 second increments with stirring between until it’s hot (about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes total). The FDA recommends cooking dishes containing raw egg to 160°F, so you can double check with a thermometer if you’re concerned.

Alternatively, if you can tell from the start that you’re going to have a lot of extra filling (depends on the size of your squash, really), simply pull some of the filling aside (probably about a cup or so) to a storage container before adding in the egg.