Sweet and Savory Beef or Turkey Stuffed Acorn Squash
Serves: 4 Ingredients:
2 acorn squash, cut in half lengthwise and seeds removed
Olive oil
1 lb ground turkey or beef
½ an onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 small apples, chopped
1 large carrot, shredded
2 cups of kale (optional)
½ cup Craisins
2 Tbsp pumpkin seeds
1 tsp dried rosemary
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp rubbed sage
½ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg
½ tsp salt, more to taste
¼ tsp black pepper, more to taste
1 T honey
1 T balsamic vinegar
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Drizzle oil inside each squash half and brush all over flesh with a basting brush. Sprinkle salt lightly over top. Coat a cookie sheet with nonstick spray, place squash halves, cut side down, and bake for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, remove from oven, flip over and drizzle honey over flesh. Set aside. (Squash is done if a fork can easily poke through flesh. Cook for 5 additional minutes, if needed)
While squash bakes, heat a pan coated with nonstick-spray over medium-high heat. Immediately add turkey or beef and brown, breaking up along the day, until cooked through. Drain fat, remove to a plate and set aside.
Add 1-2 Tbsp of olive oil to the pan and heat over medium-high heat. Once shimmering, add onion and garlic, sautéing until fragrant. Add apples, kale, if desired, and shredded carrot, cooking until kale is wilted and apples are just fork tender. Add the ground turkey back to the pan, stirring to combine. Add craisins through pepper, mix to combine and reduce heat to low. Cook for a few more minutes until craisins are soft and heated through.
In a small bowl, mix the honey and balsamic together, add to pan and toss well to combine. Taste and add additional salt/pepper, if needed.
Spoon mixture into prepared acorn squash halves and fill to the top. There may be filling left over on the side. Drizzle top lightly with honey, plate acorn squash halves and sprinkle with additional pumpkin seeds, if desired.
