|
|
|
cut squash
|
take out seeds
|
stuffing mixture
|
I love making acorn squash as a side dish (especially in Fall). Although it's a perfect side to any pork dish, it also goes well with beef or chicken. (Since it has a sweeter filling, it tastes best if your meat/poultry has a slight citrus flavor in the marinade). I like to make it when I'm serving a smaller cut of meat for a main dish, since it's a heartier side dish. ** I used pears here, but you can use apples or even peaches.
PEAR & ONION Baked STUFFED ACORN SQUASH
1 medium acorn squash ………………..3 tsp. brown sugar (or brown Splenda blend)
1 medium-large pear, cored & diced (I like the skin on ~ brown or red pears are the best. Bartlett are usually too hard) ~ apples work well too (red delicious or Rome Beauty or any sweet apple are good)
1/4 cup chopped sweet onion (Texas, Maui or Vidalia are best, but any white or yellow onion will work)
dash of salt...........................................1/8 (or dash) ground cinnamon or nutmeg
1 TB butter, melted…………………….…1 TB butter, cut into little cubes
***
Preheat oven to 375. ** In a small bowl, mix together the pears, brown sugar, onions, salt, cinnamon and melted butter. Set aside.
Cut squash in half; discard seeds. (A sharp steak knife {or similar size} stuck into the squash works well. It should "saw" down fairly easily.) Place squash cut-side-up in an 8” square pan ( a tight fit will keep them from falling over ~ or you can cut a very thin slice off the bottom of each half, so they stand up). Fill centers with pear mixture (pack it in there tightly) and tightly cover with foil (you want to "steam" the squash, to help cook it faster). Put about a scant 1/4" water in the bottom of the pan. **
TIP ~ If you have extra pear-onion mixture that doesn't fit into the squash halves, put it into a little oven-proof dish; cover with foil and bake it with the squash for the first 30 minutes. The stuffing in the squash will mash down a little then, and you can add the extra stuffing to it at that time ** (worst case scenario is that you'll have some extra baked pears to eat)
Bake at 375° for 30 minutes ~ then uncover, put the little cubes of butter on top and continue baking another 30-40 minutes (until squash is soft when you put the tip of a knife in it). Serves 2
PEAR & ONION Baked STUFFED ACORN SQUASH
1 medium acorn squash ………………..3 tsp. brown sugar (or brown Splenda blend)
1 medium-large pear, cored & diced (I like the skin on ~ brown or red pears are the best. Bartlett are usually too hard) ~ apples work well too (red delicious or Rome Beauty or any sweet apple are good)
1/4 cup chopped sweet onion (Texas, Maui or Vidalia are best, but any white or yellow onion will work)
dash of salt...........................................1/8 (or dash) ground cinnamon or nutmeg
1 TB butter, melted…………………….…1 TB butter, cut into little cubes
***
Preheat oven to 375. ** In a small bowl, mix together the pears, brown sugar, onions, salt, cinnamon and melted butter. Set aside.
Cut squash in half; discard seeds. (A sharp steak knife {or similar size} stuck into the squash works well. It should "saw" down fairly easily.) Place squash cut-side-up in an 8” square pan ( a tight fit will keep them from falling over ~ or you can cut a very thin slice off the bottom of each half, so they stand up). Fill centers with pear mixture (pack it in there tightly) and tightly cover with foil (you want to "steam" the squash, to help cook it faster). Put about a scant 1/4" water in the bottom of the pan. **
TIP ~ If you have extra pear-onion mixture that doesn't fit into the squash halves, put it into a little oven-proof dish; cover with foil and bake it with the squash for the first 30 minutes. The stuffing in the squash will mash down a little then, and you can add the extra stuffing to it at that time ** (worst case scenario is that you'll have some extra baked pears to eat)
Bake at 375° for 30 minutes ~ then uncover, put the little cubes of butter on top and continue baking another 30-40 minutes (until squash is soft when you put the tip of a knife in it). Serves 2
RSS Feed
