STUFFED ACORN SQUASH (PALEO & VEGAN OPTIONS INCLUDED)
Easy stuffed acorn squash that can be made paleo, vegetarian, or vegan.
Ingredients
- 3 acorn squash
- 1 cup wild rice (not cooked yet) I like Lundberg's
- 1 3/4 cup chicken broth, veg broth, or water
- 1/2 large or 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, diced
- 1-2 cups sliced mushrooms
- 2-3 cups packed baby spinach and/or baby kale (I often get the organic tender baby greens in a large clamshell from the store)
- 1 lb or so crumbly sausage omit for vegan
- 1 cup grated parmesan or romano cheese, optional
Instructions
- Slice and pre-roast squash: Saw the squash in half. I do it lengthwise. Scoop out seeds. Preheat the oven to 400, then drizzle the insides with olive oil and sea salt them. Place them face up on a cookie sheet. Roast for 40 minutes.
- While squash is roasting, add 1¾ cup water or broth to a saucepan along with 1 cup wild rice and make that according to package directions.
- When the rice has about 15 minutes left, make the rest of your filling: Brown sausage in a skillet over medium-high heat, then remove. Add onion and garlic to pan and cook until soft, about 5 minutes.
- Add mushrooms and cook about 3 minutes. Add broth if needed to prevent sticking.
- Add greens and cook until they wilt, about 5 additional minutes.
- Rice should be done by this point, so add the rice to your skillet with other veggies, reduce heat, then add the sausage and scooped out squash and mix everything together in the skillet. Add about 1 tsp of Italian seasoning or oregano if you have it, or fresh herbs are even better. Add salt to taste If needed.
- You can also mix dried cranberries in the filling if you have them.
- Spoon filling into squash bowels, then divide grated cheese (if using) between squash halves and return to oven for 15 or so more minutes.
- FOR PALEO OPTION: skip the wild rice and just make the filling with sausage, onion, garlic, greens, mushrooms, and optional cheese.
- FOR VEGETARIAN VERSION: skip the sausage and just make the filling with wild rice, onion, garlic, mushrooms, and greens. Cheese optional (avoid cheese if vegan unless you have vegan cheese). Enjoy!
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