This cozy, filling meal has everything you want when it’s chilly outside: savory Italian sausage, tender rice, and perfectly roasted squash that’s truly delicious (not like you’re eating your vegetables as punishment). I make this recipe every fall on those unbearably dark and short days when I need something warm and filling to fight off the gloom.
You can still feed this to the picky eaters in your family. You can change up the meat and veggies you use, and of course, you can just serve them the filling and not the squash.
Table of Contents
What You’ll Need
Make sure your squash is firm and has a dark green color outside so you know it’s just right for roasting. You can use ground turkey, chicken, or even vegetarian sausage instead of Italian sausage. And feel free to adjust the veggies based on what you have and what your family likes.
This will make six servings and you can easily make a bigger batch. If you’d like to double or triple this recipe, you can make adjustments in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
FREE FOR SUBSCRIBERS
Fall Harvest Cookbook
Subscribe (free!) to my newsletter to receive this PDF + dozens of others in my printable library. You’ll also get emails you’ll truly love, with a weekly meal and so much more.
Equipment
- Baking sheet
- 2 12-inch skillets, one with a lid for the rice
Ingredients
Squash
- 3 acorn squash
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
Stuffing
- 2 tablespoons olive oil divided
- ¾ cup long-grain rice
- 1 ½ cups chicken broth, reduced sodium
- ¾ teaspoon salt divided
- ½ teaspoon pepper divided
- 1 pound mild Italian sausage, casings removed you can use ground turkey, chicken, or vegetarian sausage instead
- 1 medium onion diced (about 2 ½ cups)
- 1 red bell pepper diced (about 1 cup)
- 2 celery stalks diced (about ½ cup)
- 2 cups spinach, chopped
- 6 ounces mushrooms chopped (about 2 cups)
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 ½ teaspoons fresh rosemary, finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme or 1 ½ teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
- ½ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley, optional for garnish
Instructions
This is one of those recipes I enjoy making. Each step is satisfying and it’s pretty to assemble. I hope you feel the same way.
Step One: Get Ready
Heat your oven to 375°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Step Two: Prep the Squash
Cut each squash in half from top to bottom with a big knife. Rock it back and forth if it’s tough to cut through. Scoop out the seeds and stringy stuff with a spoon. If the halves won’t sit flat, trim a small piece off the bottom.
Brush with olive oil, add salt and pepper, and put them cut-side up on your baking sheet. Bake for 45 minutes.
Step Three: Make the Rice
While the squash cooks, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet. Add the rice, half the salt, and a quarter of the pepper. Stir it around for a minute, then add the chicken broth.
Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook on low for 15 minutes. Turn the heat to the lowest setting and cook another 15 minutes. If it’s still hard, add a little more broth and cook 5-10 minutes more.
Step Four: Cook Everything Else
In another skillet, brown the sausage and set it aside on a plate.
Add the onion, bell pepper, and celery to the same pan. Cook 4-5 minutes until soft. Add mushrooms, spinach, garlic, rosemary, thyme, and the remaining salt and pepper. Cook until the mushrooms shrink and spinach wilts, about 5 more minutes.
Step Five: Put It Together
Mix the cooked rice and sausage into the vegetable pan. Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed.
Step Six: Stuff and Finish
Take the squash out of the oven. Fill each half with the stuffing – start with about half a cup per squash, then pile on more until they’re full.
Top each with 1-2 tablespoons of Parmesan cheese. Bake another 15 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley if you want and serve right away.
Storing & Serving
Store any leftovers in an airtight container or wrapped tightly with plastic wrap in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat it in the oven at 350°F (175°C) for 20-25 minutes on a baking sheet, covered with foil. Or you can heat it in the microwave on high for 2-3 minutes, stirring halfway through.
Serve this filling meal with simple and cozy sides.
- Have a simple mixed green salad and some garlic parmesan dinner rolls.
- Add one of these lovely fall bundt cake recipes for dessert.
Questions and Troubleshooting
Sure! Butternut squash or even delicata squash would work well. Butternut will cook the same amount of time as the acorn squash, but delicata will only cook for 25 minutes. With delicata, you might need to add the stuffing and cheese right when the squash is done instead of baking it extra, since the skin is thinner and can overcook easily.
Yes. You can prepare the stuffing and roast the squash a day ahead. Store them separately in the fridge, then assemble and bake for the final 15 minutes before serving.
The squash is ready when it’s tender, and you can easily pierce it with a fork. If it still feels very firm, give it a bit more time in the oven.
More Cozy Dinner Recipes
Make these on days when it’s cold outside and you just want to feel warm and full!
- These stuffed peppers are made bit by bit throughout the day and keep your kitchen warm.
- Stuffed shells with cheese filling are simple, delicious, and a great freezer-prep meal.
- Chicken and dumpling soup is ready quickly and for days when you feel like you need a hug.
- A chili cornbread casserole gives you the chili and cornbread you want, but all in one pan.
Printable Recipe
Sausage Stuffed Acorn Squash Recipe
Equipment
- Baking Sheet
- 2 12-inch skillets one with a lid for the rice
Ingredients
Squash
- 3 acorn squash
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
Stuffing
- 2 tablespoons olive oil divided
- ¾ cup long-grain rice
- 1 ½ cups chicken broth reduced sodium
- ¾ teaspoon salt divided
- ½ teaspoon pepper divided
- 1 pound mild Italian sausage casings removed
- 1 medium onion diced (about 2 ½ cups)
- 1 red bell pepper diced (about 1 cup)
- 2 celery stalks diced (about ½ cup)
- 2 cups spinach chopped
- 6 ounces mushrooms chopped (about 2 cups)
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 ½ teaspoons fresh rosemary finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme or 1 ½ teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
- ½ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley optional for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven. Preheat the oven to 375℉ and line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper.
- Cut squash. Using a large, sharp knife, cut the squash in half from the stem to the base, using both hands to rock the knife back and forth to cut through if necessary. Using a spoon, scoop out the seeds and pulp. Place the squash face up on the cutting board. If a squash half does not lie flat, slice a small piece off the bottom to help it lie flat.
- Roast squash. Place squash on the lined cookie sheet, cut side up, and brush with olive oil. Sprinkle with the salt and pepper. Place in the oven and cook for 45 minutes.
- Cook rice for stuffing. While the squash cooks, prepare the stuffing. In a 12-inch skillet, warm 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat. Add the rice, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper and stir, letting the rice cook for a minute or two. Add the broth and bring to a simmer. Cover the rice with a lid and cook on low heat for 15 minutes, then turn the heat to the lowest setting and cook for 15 minutes more. Add an additional 2-3 tablespoons of broth and cook another 5-10 minutes if needed if the rice is not fully cooked through.
- Brown sausage. While the rice is cooking, in a separate 12-inch skillet, brown the sausage over medium heat. Transfer cooked sausage to a large plate and set aside.
- Cook veggies. Add onion, bell pepper, and celery to the skillet, cooking for 4-5 minutes. Stir in mushrooms, spinach, garlic, rosemary, thyme, and ¼ teaspoon salt and pepper. Continue cooking until mushrooms and spinach are cooked down and the onion is translucent, about another 4-6 minutes.
- Mix stuffing components together. When the rice is done cooking, stir the rice and sausage into the vegetable mixture. Taste the filling and add additional salt and pepper if desired.
- Fill squash. When the squash finishes cooking, carefully remove it from the oven. Spoon filling into the squash, starting with ½ cup in each squash, and generously spoon more filling after all have been filled until mounded.
- Top with Parmesan and finish baking. Sprinkle 1-2 tablespoons of Parmesan over each squash and cook in the oven for an additional 15 minutes. Carefully remove from the oven, garnish with parsley if desired, and serve immediately.
Nutrition
Love,
