Cream of the Crop Recipe Week 20: Stuffed Acorn Squash

 

Stuffed Acorn Squash
by Miriam Meir

Ingredients
2 acorn squash
2 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
6 garlic cloves, sliced
1/4 cup fine burghul wheat 
1 lb ground beef or lamb
1 tbsp allspice
1/2 tbsp ground cumin
1/2 tbsp turmeric
salt and fresh ground pepper
1/3 cup chopped parsley 
1/4 cup roasted pine nuts

Step 1. 
Preheat the oven to 350. Wash the burghul, then soak in hot water for 20 minutes. 

Step 2.
Wash and dry the squash. Poke holes in squash all over with sharp knife or fork. Microwave each squash uncovered for 4 minutes. When cool enough to handle, carefully cut off the top 2 inch or so of each squash to make a "hat". Hollow out the squash to make room for your filling, saving any edible flesh. Chop the flesh up into pieces to add to the filling.  

Step 3.
Heat olive oil in pan and add the onion and a pinch of salt. Cook the onion on medium-low for about 7 minutes until soft and translucent. Add the garlic and cook for two more minutes. Remove from pan into a bowl. Mix the burghul with the onion and garlic. 

Step 4.
Add some olive oil to the pan, and cook the meat for a few minutes until no longer pink. Add allspice, cumin, turmeric, salt and pepper and mix well. Add the meat, the squash pieces from step 2, the pine nuts and the parsley to the bowl with the onion. 

Step 5.
Scoop the filling into the squash, cover with top and roast in the oven for 20 minutes. 

Tips and variations: You can use cooked quinoa or rice or red lentils instead of the burghul. For a vegan dish, you can use mushrooms instead of the meat. For some extra kick you can add one or two chopped hot peppers in step 3. For some extra fall sweetness add a teaspoon of maple or date syrup to the filling.