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Individual serving of sausage stuffed acorn squash on a wooden plate, garnished with grated Parmesan and parsley.
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Sausage Stuffed Acorn Squash Recipe

This recipe blends savory sausage, rice, and vegetables in tender roasted squash for a comforting and delicious meal.
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time1 hour
Total Time1 hour 20 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Fall, Sausage Stuffed Acorn Squash Recipe
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 576kcal
Author: Katie

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 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
  • ½ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley optional garnish

Instructions

  • Preheat oven. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit 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 of the squash to help it lie flat.
    Three halved acorn squash on a wooden cutting board, with seeds and pulp scooped out.
  • 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.
    Two sets of four acorn squash halves on baking sheets, seasoned with salt and pepper, before and after roasting.
  • 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, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper and stir, allowing the rice to cook for a minute or two. Add the broth and bring to a simmer. Cover the rice with a lid and turn to low. Cook on low heat for 15 minutes, then turn the heat to the lowest setting and cook an additional 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.
    Skillet with cooked long-grain rice.
  • 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.
    Skillet with browned mild Italian sausage.
  • 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 and continue cooking until mushrooms and spinach are cooked down and the onion is translucent, about another 4-6 minutes.
    Skillet with diced vegetables, including onion, red bell pepper, celery, mushrooms, spinach, and herbs.
  • 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.
    Skillet with mixed stuffing components of sausage, rice, and vegetables.
  • Fill squash. When the squash finishes cooking, carefully remove it from the oven. Spoon filling into the squash, starting with ½ cup of filling in each squash, and generously spoon more filling into the squash until mounded.
    Six roasted acorn squash halves filled with sausage and rice stuffing on a baking sheet.
  • 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.
    Close-up of a single roasted acorn squash half filled with sausage and rice stuffing, topped with grated Parmesan and parsley.

Notes

You can slice the squash either horizontally or vertically. I have done both. Cutting it across the middle, instead of the longer cut from the stem to the base creates a lovely kind of floral pattern in the squash when stuffing. I find though when cutting from the stem to the base you get two more equal pieces that cook more evenly. Also, the longer cut creates a little more room for the stuffing and I like the stuffing to squash ratio better. Both cuts work well though. With the shorter cut across the middle, you may have a slight amount of filling left over.
I prefer the dried thyme with the fresh rosemary. The fresh thyme you just need more of to have the thyme flavor come through and even though it's not hard to remove the leaves, you just hold the stem with one hand and slide your fingers together down with the other hand to remove the leaves, it takes more work. I do prefer the taste of the fresh rosemary to the dry though.

Nutrition

Calories: 576kcal | Carbohydrates: 47g | Protein: 19g | Fat: 36g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 18g | Cholesterol: 64mg | Sodium: 1409mg | Potassium: 1220mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 2545IU | Vitamin C: 58mg | Calcium: 216mg | Iron: 3mg