Originally published on February 23, 2010
I was lucky enough to be given a bunch of acorn squash and wanted something more to do with it than just roast it. So I came up with this stuffed squash recipe and it is delicious! To be honest, I didn’t even know if I was going to like it. But, pork and cheese, what more could you ask for? And, even though it looks like you slaved over it, the most you really have to do is brown the sausage. The rest of it pretty much takes care of itself.
This squash can be used as a side, an entree, or an appetizer at a dinner party. I also froze a few of mine and they freeze beautifully. Just remember to either thaw them fully or to cover them and keep them in the oven for at least an hour, if you’re baking them from frozen. They take a long, long time to cook after you’ve frozen them – but they taste just as great!
And the best, and most surprising part of this recipe? My 2-year-old loooooooves them!
Ingredients:
4 acorn squashes
1 onion
4 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tablespoon canola oil
Salt and pepper to taste
4 Italian sausages, casings removed
1 1/2 cups Ricotta cheese
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 1/2 cups Asiago PDO cheese, shredded
Directions:
1.) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Then cut the bottoms of the squash and remove the seeds. Stand the squash up so that the open tops are on top and place them in a casserole dish. Brush the inside and the top of the squash with the canola oil, season with salt and pepper, and bake for about 25 – 30 minutes.
2.) Once the squash has been removed from the oven, preheat the broiler.
2.) Meanwhile, heat up 1 tablespoon of oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the onion and saute for about 5 minutes. Then add the garlic and the red bell pepper. Break up the sausage so that it’s in small pieces and fry until it’s browned. When browned, remove everything from the pan with a slotted spoon and transfer to a large bowl.
3.) Add the ricotta cheese to the sausage mixture and mix until it is all well combined. Stuff each of the squashes with 1/4 of the mixture. Once stuffed, top each squash with a handful of the Asiago cheese.
4.) Place the squash about four inches under the broiler and broil until the cheese on top has melted and is bubbly and golden brown.
5.) Serve and enjoy!