Print

STUFFED ACORN SQUASH WITH QUINOA

top down view of quinoa stuffed acorn squash on a rimmed baking sheet.
Print Recipe

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 2 reviews

Quinoa Stuffed Acorn Squash with cranberry, chickpeas and pecan is full of flavor, texture and ready in about 40 minutes! Naturally vegan and gluten free.

Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 3 acorn squash
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil or pure maple syrup
  • 1 cup dried quinoa
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 2 – 3 sage leaves, minced or 3/4 teaspoon dried
  • 1/3 cup red onion, finely diced
  • 1 can (15oz) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1/2 cup dried cranberries (raisins or golden berry mix ok too)
  • 1/2 cup pecans
  • mineral salt & pepper, to taste

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment or silicone mat.

Prep Squash: Lay the acorn squash on it’s side, find the center and cut in half widthwise. Turn the squash half on its side again and trim off the end, creating a flat bottom. Using a sharp edge spoon or 1 tablespoon measure spoon, scrape around the inside of the squash removing the all seeds.

Roast Squash: Place the acorn squash on baking sheet cut side up. Brush with oil (or maple syrup for oil free), season with salt and pepper. Bake in the oven at 400 degrees for 30 minutes.

Quinoa: In a medium size pot, add quinoa, sage, garlic powder and water, bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes. Once done, fluff with fork and let quinoa rest for 10 minutes.

Assemble quinoa stuffing: To the quinoa, add the chickpeas, red onion, cranberries, salt and pepper. Just before stuffing the squash, mix in the pecans.

Stuff Squash: Fill each squash half with quinoa stuffing. Top with optional chopped parsley for a little pop of color and fresh flavor. Place in the oven at 350 degrees to rewarm if needed.

Serves 6

Store: Leftovers can be kept in the refrigerator for up 4 – 5 days, in covered containers. To reheat, place them in the oven at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes.

Notes

If you don’t care for raw onions, add them to the quinoa while cooking to ‘deflame’ and soften them.

Feel free to adjust the amount of pecans and dried cranberries to suit your taste. You may like to add a little more.

Don’t throw the seeds away, you can roast the seeds for snacking!

Find it online: https://simple-veganista.com/stuffed-acorn-squash-with-quinoa/