Acorn squash loaded with colorful quinoa stuffing is a sweet and savory dish perfect for the holidays. Its vegan and gluten-free, but more importantly, delicious!
You may have noticed, I have a good number of vegetarian and vegan dishes on the blog. That’s because I have at least an equal number of vegans and vegetarians in my life. In my circle, this isn’t a new fad, but an ongoing trend.
For twenty plus years, I’ve been honing my meat-free cooking skills, but more recently I’ve been learning how to make foods delicious without dairy and sometimes without gluten too.
You’d be surprised how easy this is when you cook from scratch. Yes, meat and dairy are full of flavor, but so are citrus, herbs, spices, fruits and vegetables.
It’s this time of year that I’m thankful that I’ve had the time and opportunity to learn to cook so many foods and cuisines. Sharing a meal is a cherished experience, and you never want to make your loved ones feel left out because they have a special diet.
No one wants to feel singled out. That’s why I work very hard to create recipes that everyone will love despite the vegan label.
So, today I have this AWESOME stuffed acorn squash recipe for you. It’s all the good stuff! It’s savory, it’s hearty, it’s filled with sweet fruity flavors and warm fall spices… and it’s DELICIOUS! Added bonus: it’s vegan and gluten-free! But you don’t need to announce that to the carnivores in the room!
How to make stuffed acorn squash
Roasting squash in the oven is easy. First, slice it in half and scoop out the seeds. Then, because it’s stuffed, slice off a portion of the underside so the squash sits level in the pan. Before baking, baste it with a maple oil mixture so the squash itself is tasty.
The squash bakes in the oven while the quinoa filling is made. I like to make a big batch of quinoa for salads, but you can also make your quinoa while the squash is roasting.
It takes about 20 minutes to make stovetop quinoa, so you can prep the other ingredients in the meantime. Then it’s just a little bit of chopping and sauteing to fill the quinoa stuffing with yummy flavors.
This recipe is loaded with interesting ingredients! The walnuts and quinoa make it hearty, while the little jewels of pomegranate and carrots are sweet surprises on the palate. But for me, the best part is the combination of orange with cinnamon, cardamom and sumac. It dresses the filling and squash with a warm, comforting zing!
The great thing about this dish is that it can be a meatless main course (hello Mondays!) but it’s also a fantastic side dish for holiday meals. I designed this stuffed acorn squash recipe as a four person main course, but it can easily be doubled or tripled for parties.
If you’re serving this as a side dish, you’ll want to buy the smallest acorn squash you can find…in that case I’d say 3 acorn squash to one quinoa stuffing recipe. That’s because this dish is quite filling and you need belly room for sauteed brussels sprouts, mashed potatoes and pear crumble!
The quinoa filling is great cold too (I ate this so many times for lunch last week). Although the stuffed squash makes a lovely presentation, you also have the option of adding cubed, roasted squash to the cold filling. This way it makes a great side salad! If you serve it like this, one recipe will feed 6-8 people.
You really can’t go wrong with this dish! Hope this acorn squash recipe fills you with all the yummy #autumnvibes! Bon appetit!
Looking for more tried and true recipes for the holidays? Check out our Thanksgiving recipe ideas.
Stuffed Acorn Squash Recipe
Ingredients
Roasted acorn squash
- 2 large acorn squash
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup, agave or honey
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- pinch cinnamon
Quinoa stuffing
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large shallot , finely diced
- 3 carrots , diced
- 1 cup walnuts , chopped
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup, agave or honey
- 2 cups cooked quinoa * see notes
- 1 orange , juiced and zested
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon cardamom
- 1/4 teaspoon sumac
- 1 cup pomegranate seeds
- 1 bunch parsley , chopped
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Roasted acorn squash
- Preheat oven to 375F and lightly oil a small casserole dish.
- Split open acorn squashes and scoop out seeds.
- Cut a small slice off of the underside of each squash half so they lie flat in the pan.
- Mix together the oil, maple syrup and spices and then baste the squash.
- Bake squash until almost done (about 35-45 minutes)
Quinoa stuffing
- Heat oil in a large pot over medium high heat.
- Once the pan is hot, add the shallots and saute for a couple of minutes.
- Add the carrots and cook, stiring often until the carrots have softened but still have a bit of bite.
- Add the walnuts and cook a couple minutes more.
- Pour in the maple syrup and cook, stirring constantly until the mixture becomes dry and caramelized. If the mixture starts to burn, turn down the heat.
- Turn off the heat and add cooked quinoa, orange juice, zest, pomegranate seeds, parsley and spices then toss to combine.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- When the acorn squash is almost done, take it out of the oven and fill the squash with quinoa stuffing.
- Bake until the acorn squash is soft and the filling is hot, about 15-20 minutes more.
Notes
- You'll need approximately 2/3rd a cup of uncooked quinoa to make two cups of cooked quinoa. Follow the package instructions to cook the quinoa or make a big batch with our rice cooker method.
- Prep ahead! The quinoa filling can be made 1-2 days in advance.
- This recipe is designed as a four person main course, but it can easily be doubled or tripled for parties and used as a side dish.
- If you’re serving this as a side dish, you’ll want to buy the smallest acorn squash you can find…in that case I’d say 3 acorn squash to one quinoa stuffing recipe.
- The quinoa filling is great cold too! You can add cubed roasted squash to the cold filling to serve it as a salad. If you serve it like this, one recipe will feed 6-8 people as a side.
Nutrition
Love this stuffed squash? Check out all our side dish recipes?
You might also like:
Pan Fried Brussel Sprouts
It really doesn’t get easier than this dish. Brussels sprouts, parmesan, pinenuts, lemon zest, olive oil, salt and pepper…simplicity is the key here and this dish cooks up in 5 minutes!
Sweet Potato Rolls
One dough, two uses! These Rosemary Sweet Potato Rolls are the perfect side to your meal but the dough can also be used for pizza and can be prepped in advance and frozen.
Stuffed Spaghetti Squash
These Stuffed Spaghetti Squash Boats will get a nutritious dinner on the table without a lot of fuss. It’s a healthy and fast dinner with big taste!
Rebecca CROUSE says
Looks wonderful. I’m definitely going to try it. I cannot see where the recipe shows how many pomegranate seeds to use. Please advise.
Vintage Kitty says
Thanks for catching that Rebecca! It’s once cup. I’ll update the recipe.