Sausage-Stuffed Acorn Squash
Roasted acorn squash halves filled with browned Italian sausage, wilted greens, rice, and parmesan, then baked until the tops turn golden — each half is a dinner in its own bowl.
Ingredients
serves 4From the garden
- 2 medium acorn squash, halved through the stem, seeds scooped out
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 cups kale or chard, stemmed and chopped
From the pantry
- 1 lb Italian sausage, casings removed
- 1½ cups cooked rice — leftover rice works well
- ½ cup parmesan, grated — divided
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- salt — to taste
- black pepper
Steps
tap a step to dim it as you go- Heat the oven to 425°F. Brush the squash halves with the olive oil, season the cut sides, and roast cut-side down on a rimmed sheet pan 25–30 minutes until a knife slides into the thickest part easily.
- Meanwhile, brown the sausage in a large skillet over medium-high heat, breaking it into crumbles, 6–8 minutes until no pink remains. Add the onion and cook 4 minutes until soft, then stir in the garlic and Italian seasoning.
- Add the greens by the handful and toss until wilted, 2–3 minutes. Off the heat, stir in the rice and half the parmesan; taste and season.
- Flip the squash halves cut-side up, season the cavities, and mound the filling in generously. Top with the remaining parmesan.
- Bake 12–15 minutes until the filling is hot through and the cheese is golden. Rest 5 minutes — the squash flesh scoops up with every bite of filling.