Stuffed Acorn Squash With Turkey, Quinoa and Sage

This stuffed acorn squash is the dinner I make the first week the farm stand fills up with those dark green, ridged squash. Each half gets roasted until the flesh is soft and sweet, then packed with a savory filling of lean ground turkey, quinoa, spinach, onion, celery and sage, and finished with Parmesan and toasted pecans. It tastes like Thanksgiving stuffing, but it is a full weeknight meal.

The numbers: 4 stuffed halves, about 1 hour start to finish (15 minutes of hands-on work), and roughly 468 calories, 29 g protein and 12 g fiber per half. One half is dinner for one person.

Stuffed Acorn Squash Ingredients

Serves 4 (one squash half each).

• 2 medium acorn squash (about 1 1/2 lb each)
• 1 tbsp olive oil, divided
• 1 lb (454 g) 93% lean ground turkey
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 celery ribs, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tsp dried sage
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 3/4 tsp salt, divided
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 2 cups (60 g) baby spinach
• 1 cup cooked quinoa
• 1/3 cup (30 g) grated Parmesan, divided
• 1/4 cup (28 g) chopped pecans

No cooked quinoa in the fridge? Simmer 1/3 cup dry quinoa in 2/3 cup water for about 15 minutes while the squash roasts. It makes right around 1 cup.

How to Make Stuffed Acorn Squash

1. Heat the oven to 400°F and line a sheet pan with parchment. Cut each squash in half through the stem end and scoop out the seeds. Brush the cut sides with 1 tsp of the oil, sprinkle with 1/4 tsp of the salt, and set them cut side down on the pan. Roast for 30 to 35 minutes, until a fork slides easily into the thickest part.
2. While the squash roasts, heat the remaining 2 tsp oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the turkey and cook for 6 to 7 minutes, breaking it into small crumbles, until it is no longer pink.
3. Add the onion and celery and cook for about 5 minutes, until soft. Stir in the garlic, sage, thyme, the remaining 1/2 tsp salt and the pepper, and cook for 1 minute more.
4. Turn off the heat. Stir in the spinach until it wilts, then fold in the quinoa and half of the Parmesan.
5. Flip the squash halves cut side up. Pack the filling into the hollows, mounding it high, then top with the pecans and the rest of the Parmesan.
6. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until the cheese melts and the pecans smell toasty. Let the squash rest for 5 minutes before serving.

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Calories and Protein in One Stuffed Squash Half

I calculated these from USDA FoodData Central values for each ingredient, divided by 4. The squash is counted as about 1 cup (205 g) of baked flesh per half; a bigger squash adds a little more. Garlic, herbs and pepper are not counted.

Per stuffed half	Amount
Calories	about 468
Protein	29 g
Carbohydrates	45 g
Fat	21 g
Fiber	12 g

Most of the protein comes from the turkey, with a few grams each from the quinoa, Parmesan and pecans. Most of the fiber comes from the squash itself: baked acorn squash has 4.4 g fiber per 100 g, which is a lot for a vegetable that tastes this sweet. If you want a bigger protein number for the day, pair it with one of the meals from our list of high protein recipes at lunch.

Tips for Picking and Cutting Acorn Squash

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• Pick a heavy one. A good acorn squash feels heavy for its size and has dull, deep green skin with maybe one orange patch where it rested on the ground. Skip any with soft spots or cracks.
• Soften it before you cut. The rind is hard and the ridges make the knife slip. Pierce the squash a few times with a fork and microwave it for 2 to 3 minutes. It cuts much more easily, and the roasting time barely changes.
• Cut through the stem end. Set the squash on a damp towel so it does not roll, and cut from the stem down to the point. Halves cut this way sit flatter and hold more filling.
• Wobbly halves? Shave a thin slice off the rounded bottom so each half sits level. Just do not cut through to the hollow.
• Roast cut side down first. The trapped steam cooks the flesh evenly and keeps it from drying out before the filling goes in.

You can eat the skin of acorn squash. After roasting it softens enough to chew, though it stays firmer than the flesh. Most people scoop the filling and flesh out together and leave the shell, and both ways are fine.

Stuffed Acorn Squash Variations

The method stays the same for all of these: roast the halves, cook the filling in one skillet, stuff, bake 10 minutes. The nutrition numbers above only apply to the main recipe.

Vegetarian stuffed acorn squash

Swap the turkey for 1 1/2 cups cooked brown or green lentils and add the onion, celery and garlic to the skillet first with all of the oil. Use walnuts instead of pecans if you like a more bitter crunch. The lentils bring the protein back up and make it hearty enough for a main course.

Sausage-stuffed acorn squash

Use 1 lb of uncased chicken or turkey sausage in place of the ground turkey and cut the salt to 1/4 tsp, since sausage is already seasoned. This is the version closest to classic sausage stuffing.

Apple and cranberry

Fold one small diced apple and 2 tbsp dried cranberries into the filling with the quinoa. It turns the dish sweeter and more holiday-like, a good fit for a Thanksgiving table. Dried cranberries are usually sweetened, so keep the amount small.

Wild rice instead of quinoa

Use 1 cup of cooked wild rice or a wild rice blend for a chewier, nuttier filling. Farro works too.

Make Ahead and Storage

Stuffed acorn squash is a good make-ahead dinner because both parts hold up well on their own.

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• Prep ahead: Roast the squash halves and cook the filling, then store them in separate containers in the fridge. When you want dinner, stuff the cold halves and bake at 375°F for about 20 minutes, until hot all the way through.
• Fridge: Leftovers with cooked meat or poultry keep 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator, according to the FoodSafety.gov cold storage chart.
• Freezer: The same chart gives 2 to 6 months for cooked meat or poultry leftovers (that range is for quality). Freeze the filling on its own; roasted squash turns watery after thawing.
• Reheat: Microwave a covered half for 2 to 3 minutes, or warm it in a 350°F oven for 15 to 20 minutes.

If you cook on Sunday for the week, the filling also works on its own over greens or in a bowl with roasted vegetables. Our healthy sheet pan dinners pair well with it, since the oven is already on.

What to Serve With It

One stuffed half is filling on its own, so the sides should be light: a green salad with a sharp vinaigrette, roasted green beans, or a cup of soup on a cold night. For more cozy ideas in the same spirit, try our healthy fall dinners or a big pot of easy turkey chili for the rest of the week.

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My honest take: this is one of the few healthy fall recipes that does not feel like a compromise. The squash does the sweet part, the sage and Parmesan do the savory part, and you are not missing butter or bread crumbs.

Sources

• USDA FoodData Central values via Getfoodfacts: acorn squash, baked (FDC 169293), ground turkey 93% lean, raw (FDC 172850), quinoa, cooked (FDC 168917), Parmesan, grated (FDC 325036), pecans (FDC 170182), olive oil (FDC 171413), onions (FDC 170000), celery (FDC 169988), spinach (FDC 168462).
• FoodSafety.gov: Cold Food Storage Chart.