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This Apple and Maple Sausage stuffed Acorn Squash recipe is full of all of the flavors of Fall! You can't have acorn squash without brown sugar and butter, so we start there and add Thyme and Sage. We just keeping piling on the flavor until it is full on Fall perfection! Packed with protein and veggies, it is a meal itself! Perfect for a cool fall evening. I hope you love it!
Did you grow up eating acorn squash with brown sugar and butter? Was that a thing for everyone? I don't know about you, but I would eat just the very top layer of squash so that my bite was mostly brown sugar and butter. As far as I was concerned, the squash just got in the way. Ha! So, this is a grown up version of that sugary, buttery classic, and I promise you will even want to eat the squash!
Ingredients
- 2 Whole Fresh Acorn Squash
- 2 Sweet and flavorful Apples
- 1 lb Maple Sausage
- Panko Japanese Breadcrumbs
- Grated Parmesan Cheese
- 1 Shallot
- Fresh Sage
- Fresh Thyme
- Butter
- Sea Salt
- Brown Sugar
- Maple Syrup
- Pumpkin Pie Spice
Lately, I have been going crazy over squash of all kinds. I try to plan meals according to the fresh veggies of the season, so squash in the fall is an obvious choice. With the addition of Sage, a little pumpkin spice, garlic, shallots, maple Pork Sausage and even a little drizzle of maple syrup, I am not sure there are any fall flavors that we have left out! There are so many different kinds of squash and a million different ways to prepare them. I have to say, this stuffed Acorn Squash is definitely one of my favs.
How to Make the Sausage Stuffed Acorn Squash...
Start by cutting your squash in half. Be so careful and use a good sharp knife! In my opinion, the most important tool in the kitchen is a good, sharp Chef Knife. I have mentioned so many times how I love my Shun knives, and for this particular application, I use my Shun 8" Chef knife.
So, we start out with the childhood memory of roasted Acorn Squash with Brown Sugar and Butter. Smother your squash in the butter and brown sugar mix and season with a little salt and pepper. Pop it in the oven and roast it at 425ยฐF until the squash is tender and the butter and brown sugar have formed a puddle of deliciousness in the center.
While the squash is roasting, brown the maple sausage in a skillet. Once it has browned, set it aside while you cook the apples, shallots and garlic. Cook them on medium heat until the apples soften and the shallots brown and the garlic becomes fragrant. Once they are ready, put everything in a large bowl.
Pour the brown sugar and butter "puddles" from the squash into the bowl. Yeah, Yum. Then, add the herbs, pumpkin pie spice, salt, freshly grated parmesan, and Panko breadcrumbs. Mix it all together. Try a bite of it. Good, right?? Try not to eat it all because now we stuff the squash.
Spoon the mixture into the center of the squash. They should be mounded, just stuff the centers until you've used up all of the sausage and apple mixture. Now, pop them back into the oven and keep them there for about 20 minutes or until the topping is nice and browned.
When you pull them from the oven, drizzle or brush each squash with about a teaspoon of maple syrup. It just adds another little nostalgic sweetness.
Also, just a note of caution...these guys get SO hot and stay SO hot for quite a while, so let them sit for about 10 minutes before you serve them. They will still be plenty hot but will have a chance to take at least a little of the edge off. Then, Enjoy!
More Fall Recipes
If you are in the mood for comfort food and the flavors of fall, please check out my recipe for Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese, or this Pork Chop with Pumpkin Spiced Applesauce. If you are looking for a sweet treat, try these Spicy Rum Ginger Cookies, or this Citrus Glazed Orange Cardamom Cake!
I hope you enjoy making (and eating!) these Sausage Stuffed Acorn Squash! If you do, I would love to hear from you in the comments below. Thank you and Thank you for visiting Mollie in Montana~*โฅ๏ธ
๐ Recipe
Apple and Maple Sausage Stuffed Acorn Squash
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat Oven to 425ยฐ
- Cut Acorn Squash in half and remove seeds
- Mix 2 tablespoon Butter, ยฝ Cup Brown Sugar, 1 teaspoon salt and ยผ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice in small bowl
- Rub cut side of Acorn squash with butter and sugar mixture
- Place squash, cut side up on lined baking sheet and place in 425ยฐ oven for 45 minutes.
- Brown Sausage in large skillet.
- Remove sausage from skillet and add Apples, Shallots and Garlic to skillet. Cook on medium heat for 5 minutes, until shallots have browned and apples are softened.
- Add Sausage back into skillet and combine.
- Remove from heat and place apples and sausage mixture into large bowl.
- Add Sage and Thyme, parmesan and Panko and stir to combine
- After squash comes out of the oven, carefully dump the juice from each of the squash halves into the bowl of Sausage apple mix.
- Mix everything together and then spoon mixture into the center of each of the squash halves until each half is piled high and all the mixture has been used.
- Place in 425ยฐ oven and bake for 20 minutes until top is browned.
- Pull the squash from the oven and brush each squash with a bit of maple syrup.
- Be SO careful. These little squashes retain their heat like crazy, so let them sit 10 minutes or so before serving. Enjoy!
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