Mediterranean stuffed acorn squash is easy, delicious and a showstopper. This vegetarian version is customizable to your liking!
This stuffed acorn squash recipe is a favorite of our family. With warm Mediterranean spices, every bite of this dish is just perfect. If you love squash recipes in fall as much as we do, try my roasted acorn squash, roasted butternut squash soup and honey lemon roasted butternut squash.
Table Of Contents:
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Showstopper: This vegetarian stuffed acorn squash would be the showstopper at any table. It's the perfect holiday main dish that's so delicious.
- Easy: You can make the filling ahead of time and assemble when ready to bake. It might look like you've spent hours to make this dish, but it's actually very simple to put together.
- Customizable: You can easily customize this stuffed acorn squash to your liking and add or leave out the ingredients depending on what you have on hand.
Ingredients To Make Stuffed Acorn Squash
- Acorn squash: You need half a squash for each person. Make sure the squash is completely clean and it doesn't have any soft spots. It's best if all the squashes are the similar in size so they roast evenly.
- Olive oil: You need a bit of olive oil to cook the filling.
- Vegetables: Use onion, garlic and peppers as the base for this Mediterranean flavored filling.
- Tomato paste: A little bit of tomato paste would give both flavor and color to the filling.
- Pomegranate molasses: To add tanginess and a subtle sweetness to the filling. You can make homemade pomegranate molasses or use store-bought.
- Rice: Any cooked rice including basmati or jasmine would work.
- Spices: A combination of cumin, coriander, turmeric, paprika and sumac would add a lot of flavor.
- Lemon: To add some brightness and balance the flavors.
- Walnuts: Add walnuts for crunch and taste.
How To Make Stuffed Acorn Squash
- Cut the acorn squash in half and remove the seeds using a spoon. Brush with olive oil and roast in the oven at 400 degrees F for 40 minutes until fork tender.
- Meanwhile, prepare the filling by sauteing onion, garlic and peppers in olive oil.
- Add in the tomato paste and pomegranate molasses and stir to combine.
- Add the rice and spices. Mix and add the walnuts, parsley and lemon juice.
- Spoon the filling into the roasted acorn squash halves.
- Bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes and serve warm.
Variation
Here are a few suggestions on how to jazz up this stuffed acorn squash recipe:
- Add meat: You can add ground meat, chicken or sausage to the filling for more protein. If doing so, cook the meat with the onion and garlic before adding the rest of the ingredients.
- Use other vegetables: You can add peas, chickpeas, cabbage or mushrooms to the filling.
- Add cheese: A bit of feta or mozzarella makes these stuffed squashed even more delicious.
- Spice it up: You can use other spice mixes such as ras el hanout or seven spice.
Serving Suggestions
Serve vegetarian stuffed acorn squash with Persian mast-o-khiar (yogurt and cucumbers), Torshi (Persian style pickles) or tahini sauce.
You can also serve this dish with creamy cucumber salad, fattoush salad, beet salad or Mediterranean salad.
Storing The Leftovers
Store the leftovers in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days. To reheat, place the stuffed acorn squash in a baking pan and cover with a piece of aluminum foil. Reheat in the oven at 325 degrees F for 15 minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
There is no need to peel acorn squash for this recipe. The skin actually works as a barrier to keep the squash together.
Use a sharp chef's knife to cut the squash in half. Make sure the squash is on a sturdy board and is not rolling around.
Did you make this recipe? I'd love to hear about it! Please comment and leave a 5-star🌟 rating below. You can also follow us on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest or subscribe to our newsletter to get a free e-Cookbook!
Mediterranean Stuffed Acorn Squash
Ingredients
- 2 acorn squash
- 3 tbsp olive oil extra virgin
- 1 onion chopped
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- ½ red bell pepper diced
- ½ tbsp tomato paste
- 1 tbsp pomegranate molasses
- 1 cup cooked rice
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ½ tsp coriander
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon sumac
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ⅓ cup walnuts chopped
- ⅓ cup parsley chopped
- 1 lemon juice of
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Cut the acorn squash in half and scoop out the seeds and strings. Place the acorn squash halves on the baking sheet and brush lightly with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Roast in the oven for 40 minutes until they are fork tender.
- Meanwhile, heat the remaining 2 tablespoon of olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Saute the onion until translucent. Add the garlic and bell pepper. Cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Add in the tomato paste and pomegranate molasses. Stir to combine and cook for another 2 minutes. Add in the cooked rice followed by the cumin, coriander, turmeric, paprika, sumac and salt. Mix and cook for 2 more minutes.
- Add in the walnuts, parsley and lemon juice. Stir and turn the heat off.
- Set the oven to 375 degrees F. Spoon the filling into the roasted acorn squash. Place them on a baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes.
Video
Notes
- Store the leftovers in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days. To reheat, place the leftovers in a baking pan covered with aluminum foil. Reheat at 325 degrees F for 15 minutes.
- You can use leftover basmati, jasmine or brown rice for this recipe.
- Jazz up this recipe by adding some feta cheese or mozzarella at the very end.
Emily
I have an acorn squash I've been wondering what to do with and I think I might need to make this... yum!
unicornsinthekitchen@gmail.com
Hopefully you will like it Emily!
Charlene Asay
I love squash recipes this time of year. Thanks for sharing.
unicornsinthekitchen@gmail.com
You're welcome! Fall is all about Pumpkins and squash!
Sarah
These are beautiful! I've never cooked with acorn squash before, but it's so dang cute! I'll have to try this out 🙂
unicornsinthekitchen@gmail.com
You will love them Sarah! This was my first time too! They are so cute!
Kathryn with Going zero waste
i love stuffed acorn squash! My mom always made a brown sugar stuffing in one for thanksgiving. MMMmmmm.
unicornsinthekitchen@gmail.com
Yeah Kathryn I have heard many people make it sweet! I would like to try some!
Sarah Bailey
Ohh I haven't tried Acorn Squash before, perhaps it is a must try this autumn. x
unicornsinthekitchen@gmail.com
It is! And it looks so pretty!
Amanda Edenfield
I have a couple of acorn squash that I need to cook, and this gave me the perfect inspiration! Thanks for the recipe!
unicornsinthekitchen@gmail.com
Thank you for visiting! I'm glad you liked it!
Sherri @ Watch Learn Eat
Such a great idea! Looks so delicious and the colors are beautiful! 🙂
unicornsinthekitchen@gmail.com
Thank you Sheri! It was delicious!
Lynn | The Road to Honey
Ha! Ha! As you went through the list of ingredients in every Iranian household I was making a mental checklist. No surprise we always have these ingredients in stock as my hubby is from Iran. As for these squashes they look glorious indeed. I love that you can easily cook something that looks so elegant in so little time. Perfect!
unicornsinthekitchen@gmail.com
Thank you so much Lynn! Wow so you always have saffron right? Awesome! Actually that is what I am trying to show on my blog, that it is easy to make beautiful and delicious food in no time!
Isabelle @ Crumb
These little acorn squash look glorious indeed! I'm currently eating all the squash in sight, since they're in season and I'm more than a little squash obsessed... love the idea of stuffing them with such a flavourful (and colourful!) mixture.
unicornsinthekitchen@gmail.com
Thank you Isabelle! Yea I'm kinda getting crazy about all the squash here!
Nicole Thien
What a great recipe! I love Acorn Squash! Well Done!
unicornsinthekitchen@gmail.com
Thank you Nicole!
Monroe
The dish looks and I am sure tastes absolutely amazing. I love squash in any form ... great post
unicornsinthekitchen@gmail.com
Thanks Monroe! Fall is all about pumpkins, apples and squash!
Mary
Stuffed squash makes for such a beautiful presentation! Just lovely!
unicornsinthekitchen@gmail.com
Thank you Mary! I'm happy you liked it!
Christine | Vermilion Roots
Almost every Asian stir-fry starts with "saute garlic and onions" too! 🙂
unicornsinthekitchen@gmail.com
Isn't that just beautiful? 🙂 I love onion !
Chris @ SimpleFood365
This is a great idea! We roast acorn squash here a lot of never had it stuffed like this! I am gonna save this recipe so we can try it!
unicornsinthekitchen@gmail.com
I hope you like it Chris! I also roasted it and it was great!
Sara - The Organic Dietitian
Acorn squash isn't something i make enough in the fall. Thanks for the inspiration!
unicornsinthekitchen@gmail.com
Hi Sara! Yes I didn't make enough of it either but hey, there is still time!