Best 6 Acorn Squash And Sausage Baking Recipes

ACORN SQUASH WITH SWEET SPICY SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Place the squash halves face-down in a baking dish in 1 inch of water and bake until flesh is tender, about 45 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat; cook the sausage in the oil until brown, breaking the meat into small pieces as it cooks; set aside.
• Once the squash halves are tender, discard the water. Generously sprinkle brown sugar into the cavity of each squash half, reserving about 1/4 cup for later use. Fill the squash halves with the browned sausage, and top with the reserved brown sugar. Return squash to the baking dish and bake until the sugar begins to melt, about 15 minutes.

SAUSAGE STUFFED ACORN SQUASH

Steps:

• Bake the squash: Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. With a sharp, sturdy chef's knife, carefully cut the squash in half from stem to base. Scoop out and discard the stringy core and seeds. Arrange the halves cut-sides up on a rimmed baking sheet. Brush each half with 1 teaspoon olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place in the oven and bake for 40 minutes, until the edges begin to wrinkle and the flesh is fork-tender. Set aside. Reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees F.
• While the squash bakes, prepare the filling: Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sausage. Brown the meat, breaking it apart into small pieces for 3 minutes.
• Add the mushrooms, onion, apple, salt, pepper, nutmeg, allspice, and minced garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, until the sausage is cooked through, the vegetables and apple are softened, have given up liquid, and the liquid has cooked off, about 8 additional minutes.
• When the squash is cool enough to handle, scoop out its flesh, leaving a wall all the way around that is about ¼-inch thick. Add the scooped squash to the pan with the sausage. Add the herbs and ¼ cup Parmesan. Stir to combine. Taste and adjust salt and pepper as desired.
• Mound the filling inside of the hollowed squash halves. Sprinkle the remaining Parmesan over the top. Place the pan in the oven and bake until the cheese is melted and the filling is nice and hot, about 15 minutes. Sprinkle with additional fresh herbs as desired. Serve hot.

ACORN SQUASH WITH KALE AND SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375°. Cut a thin slice off round side of each squash half to create a stable base. Sprinkle with salt and pepper; coat with cooking spray. Place squash flesh side down on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil; bake until golden and tender, 30 minutes. Remove from oven; flip squash and set aside. Heat broiler. In a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, heat 1 teaspoon oil. Add sausage; cook, breaking into coarse pieces, until brown, 6 minutes; transfer to a bowl. To same skillet, add remaining 2 teaspoons oil and leek; cook until leek is soft, 3 minutes. Add garlic; cook, 30 seconds. Add kale and toss; add broth. Cover and cook until kale is tender, 5 minutes; stir in sausage. Divide kale-sausage filling among squash. In a bowl, combine walnuts, Parmesan and panko; sprinkle evenly over squash bowls and coat with cooking spray. Broil until panko is golden, 2 minutes.

SAUSAGE-STUFFED ACORN SQUASH

Steps:

• Halve squash lengthwise; discard seeds. Place squash in a microwave-safe dish, cut side down. Microwave, covered, on high until tender, 10-12 minutes. , Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook and crumble sausage with onion over medium heat until no longer pink, 5-7 minutes; drain. Remove from heat; stir in spinach, cranberries and bread crumbs. In a small bowl, whisk together egg and milk; add to sausage mixture and toss until moistened. , Turn over squash; fill with sausage mixture. Microwave, covered, until a thermometer inserted in stuffing reads 165°, 2-3 minutes.

SUNNY'S ITALIAN SAUSAGE-STUFFED ACORN SQUASH

Steps:

• For the squash: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Place the squash on a baking sheet flesh-side up and rub with the olive oil. Season liberally with salt and pepper. Roast until the edges begin to ripple and a poke with a fork reveals tender flesh, about 40 minutes. Allow to cool until easy to handle.
• Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.
• Use a spoon to scoop out the flesh into a large bowl, leaving about 1/4 inch of flesh within the skin of each squash half to help it maintain its shape.
• For the filling: In a large pan on medium-high heat, add the olive oil and sausage. While cooking, break the sausage into bits like ground meat with a wooden spoon. Once some of the fat is rendered from the sausage, add the onions, paprika, pumpkin pie spice, sage, celery, bell peppers and a pinch of salt. Cook until the sausage is done and the vegetables are tender.
• Add the mixture to the bowl of squash along with the cheese, walnuts and cranberries and stir to combine. Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed. Fill the hollowed squash halves with the mixture and place back in the oven to melt the cheese and make the tops golden brown, 15 more minutes. Sprinkle with parsley and serve warm.

STUFFED ACORN SQUASH WITH SAUSAGE AND KALE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400 degrees. Carefully halve cut each squash in half through the stem, removing the stem if still attached. Scoop out and discard the seeds, and place the squash halves on a sheet pan, cut-side up. (You may want to trim the bottom of the squash halves slightly so they don't wobble on the pan.) Brush each squash generously with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast until the flesh is very tender when pierced with a knife, 35 to 40 minutes.
• Meanwhile, if using the hazelnuts, heat a large skillet slicked with olive oil over medium. Add the hazelnuts and toast, tossing often, until the skins begin to split and the nuts are fragrant, about 5 minutes. Transfer the nuts to a cutting board to cool. Once cooled, roll the nuts around on the board with the palm of your hand to remove some of the skins. Discard the skins, coarsely chop the nuts, sprinkle lightly with salt, then set aside.
• Add 2 tablespoons olive oil to the skillet and heat over medium-low. Add the shallots and cook for 3 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until translucent. Add the sage and garlic and cook for 1 minute, stirring often, until the garlic is fragrant. Add the kale and cook, tossing, just until it begins to wilt.
• Raise the heat to medium-high and add the sausage, nutmeg, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Cook, crumbling the sausage with a wooden spoon as it cooks, until no longer pink, about 6 minutes. Add the wine and cook, scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the pan, until about half the liquid has evaporated. Remove the skillet from the heat.
• Using a small spoon, gently scrape about 3 heaping tablespoons of flesh from the cavity of each squash (you should have about 1 cup altogether) and add it to the sausage, along with the rice and Parmesan. Mix thoroughly until combined, breaking up any chunks of squash.
• Divide the sausage mixture among the squash halves, filling each one to the top. (Depending on the size of the squash cavities, you may need to slightly heap the filling.) Return the sheet pan to the oven to roast for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the filling is heated through and starting to brown on top.
• Sprinkle with chopped hazelnuts and parsley, if using, and serve hot.