Does cold weather give anyone else all the hibernation feels? When it gets cold out, all I want to do is cook in my sweatpants and stuff my face on my couch, under some blankets with my dogs (and maybe a glass of wine).
I’ve always been a huge fan of anything with squash in it- actually my grandma used to make acorn squash for dessert in the winter time when I was little. I blogged that one last winter, and I’ll like it here for you guys too, in case you were looking for something sweet vs. savory.
Honestly, either of these would be a great dish for a holiday get together! The recipe I’m sharing today is such a hearty dish, that it can be served as your entree, no sides needed!
I even added 1/4 cup ground flax seed to the recipe to give it a little boost of fiber and Omega-3’s. The best part? It blended right in the the stuffing and you couldn’t even tell!
- 1 cup uncooked wild rice
- 1/2 lb ground Italian sausage
- 2 Tbsp olive oil, divided
- 2 Acorn squash, halved and de-seeded
- 1 c chopped yellow onion
- 3 oz. fresh chopped mushrooms
- 1/2 c chopped celery
- 2 Tbsp minced garlic
- 6 oz fresh baby spinach
- 2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
- 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
- Salt and pepper to taste
- cook rice according to instructions on package.
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
- Brush olive oil over cut side of acorn squash and sprinkle with salt.
- Place squashes cut side down on parchment lined baking sheet.
- Bake for 35 minutes or until just tender.
- Heat remaining olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
- Add sausage, cook for 3 minutes stirring to crumble.
- Add onion and celery, cook for 5 minutes.
- Add garlic and spinach, stirring until wilted.
- Remove pan from heat and stir in cooked rice, parsley, lemon juice and salt and pepper.
- Spoon into the squash halves.
- Bake at 425 for 10-15 minutes or until squash are lightly browned and tender when you stick them with a fork.
- I even tried a few bites drizzled with honey, and that was a great little addition of flavor to this dish!
