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And what to stuff that squash with? Alana Chernila, who wrote the new cookbook Homemade Kitchen, stopped by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about her ideas on stuffing squash. She says you can really use your imagination, but she likes to start with grains (like millet or rice) leftover from the previous night's meal.
2 acorn, delicata, dumpling, or carnival squash, cut in half through the stem and seeded
2 teaspoons olive oil, plus more for rubbing the squash and oiling the dish
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
6 ounces chorizo or sweet sausage, crumbled or cut
into small pieces
1 cup chopped leeks (1 small leek)
1 cup chopped apple (1 to 2 apples)
Freshly ground pepper
2 cups sliced tender greens (spinach, tatsoi, kale,
Swiss chard), cut into ribbons
4 fresh sage leaves, coarsely chopped
2 cups cooked millet, rice, or quinoa
½ cup grated Cheddar cheese
1 Preheat the oven to 375° F. Rub the flesh of each
squash half with olive oil, and oil an ovenproof dish or baking sheet. Sprinkle the whole baking dish with ½ teaspoon of the salt. Lay the squash flesh side down in the dish and bake until it is very tender when pricked with a fork, 30 to 40 minutes. Remove the squash from the oven and raise the oven temperature to 425°F.
2 Meanwhile, heat the remaining olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the chorizo and fry until browned. Remove from the pan and set aside. Add the leeks to the hot oil and cook until soft, about 3 minutes. Add the apple, remaining ¼ teaspoon salt, and pepper, and cook for another minute. Add the greens, sage, cooked grains, and reserved chorizo. Cook for another minute, stirring to combine, and remove from heat. Taste, and adjust the salt and pepper if needed.
3 Turn the cooked squash over in the baking dish so it is flesh side up. (Be careful, as steam will escape when you turn it.) Scoop the filling into the cavity of each squash half, piling it into a mountain so that it holds as much as possible. Sprinkle with cheese andbake until the cheese melts, about 10 minutes.
Variations
• Chopped fried bacon is a great substitute for the
chorizo.
• Crumbled corn bread is a delicious substitute for
the grain. When you make corn bread and have a few
pieces left over, just crumble them into a containe
r and freeze them for your next batch of stuffed
winter squash.
