Kitchen notes · a little help before you start
Wild Rice Stuffed Acorn Squash
An acorn squash half makes a generous little bowl for this savory rice filling. There are sweet bites tucked among the grains, and the squash underneath gives you something soft to scoop up with them.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 65 min
- Total
- 80 min
- Original yield
- Serves 4
- Ingredients
- 17 listed
Make it part of your week
Recipe categories & planning details
- Meal type
- Dinner · Main course · Sides
- Cuisine
- American
- Cooking method
- Baking · Baked & roasted
- Preparation & total time
- Prep: 15 minutes or less · Total: over 60 minutes
- Dietary characteristics
- Vegetarian
- Occasion
- Thanksgiving
- Dish type
- Rice dishes
A few quick notes
1. Start the rice first
Bring the rice and broth to a boil covered, then lower the heat for the long simmer while you prepare the squash.
2. Roast the cut faces down
Season the hollowed squash halves and place them cut side down on the lined tray for their first baking stage.
3. Turn before stuffing
Flip the partly baked squash so the cavities face up before spooning in the finished rice mixture for the second bake.
Get to know the ingredients
Uncooked wild rice blend
The rice starts uncooked and simmers in vegetable broth before joining the skillet of onion, celery and apple.
Cored diced apple
Core and dice the apple, then cook it with the herbs just until slightly softened before the rice goes in.
Chopped walnuts
The walnuts join the cooked rice, cranberries and parsley at the mixing stage, after the apple and vegetables have softened.
Let’s make it
Choose your servings, then check things off as you go.
Original recipe: Serves 4. Original quantities shown.
Check ingredients as you prepare them. These checks stay on this page.
How to make it
0 of 6 steps completeMake room for Wild Rice Stuffed Acorn Squash
Review ingredients in your pantry before anything is added. Meal plans use your household size; grocery-only additions use the servings selected above.
The last little job
Give the filled squash its second bake
Return the rice-filled halves to the oven for the final baking stage, then serve hot with the filling nestled in the cavities.
A little more help as you go
A vegan option is included
You can use vegan butter or your preferred cooking oil in place of the butter when preparing the filling.
Let the onion start alone
Soften the diced onion in butter first, then add finely chopped celery for a further brief saute before the apple.
A few questions you might have
Do I peel the squash?
The directions halve the squash lengthwise and scoop out the seeds, keeping the halves intact as shells for the filling.
When do the cranberries go in?
Add the dried cranberries with the cooked wild rice, walnuts and parsley, then stir that filling together before stuffing.
Does the rice finish cooking inside the squash?
Cook the rice in the covered pot first. The finished rice is mixed into the filling before the second squash bake.
Must the filled halves stay on the baking sheet?
They can stay on the baking sheet or move into a casserole dish when you turn them over to fill.
When do I add the sage and thyme?
They go into the skillet with the diced apple, salt and pepper, after the onion and celery have had their head start.
Any more cooking tips?
Use a vegan butter substitute or your favorite cooking oil to make this recipe vegan.
Storage & reheating safety
For cooked, perishable leftovers, refrigerate within 2 hours (1 hour above 90°F), using shallow containers for prompt cooling. Keep the refrigerator at 40°F or below, use refrigerated leftovers within 3–4 days, and reheat hot leftovers to 165°F, checked with a food thermometer. Follow any shorter package limit.
These are general safety limits, not a tested storage or freezing recommendation for this particular dish. USDA leftovers guidance · Safe cooking temperatures
Recipe source: budgetbytes.com. Ingredient names and quantities may be adapted for the pantry.
Preparation notes follow the recipe shown here.
