Author: I'm a big fan of my Puff Pastry Wrapped Lentil Loaf, and according to 48 thousand pins on Pinterest, the 100+ comments, and all of the gorgeous photos of your loaves that you tag me in on Instagram (I adore seeing those!) you are big fans of my lentil loaf as well. As much as I adore that loaf in all its gorgeousness, I was craving a new holiday centerpiece. Introducing my new, stunningly gorgeous, super duper scrumptious, Stuffed Roasted Butternut Squash.
I got the idea of stuffing a butternut squash from the vegducken that has been flying around the internet. While I loved the idea of stuffing a butternut squash (clearly), I read a lot of complaints about the layers of bland and mushy vegetables, the butternut squash which was difficult to hollow out when raw, and that the recipe took a ton of time and work to prepare, all of that and it isn't even vegan. I was determined to solve all of these problems.
Bland and mushy vegetables were replaced with my flavour packed wild rice stuffing, the butternut squash is roasted prior to hollowing it out, making it easy and spoon scoopable. And while it isn't my quickest recipe ever, most of the time is spent hands off letting the squash bake and the rice cook. The result? OMG I'm just so in love. Did I say that already?
Let me count the ways I love Stuffed Roasted Butternut Squash:
- It can be prepared ahead of time! That's right, you can make the squash and stuffing, and have the whole thing done and tied up with a bow (literally), and ready to go. Just store it covered in your fridge for up to 3 days and the heat through when ready to serve.
- That stuffing! It took me 4 test drives to nail it, but I am now officially smitten with this stuffing. Wild rice, cranberries, walnuts, sage... so much scrumptiousness, I have a hard time not eating it all before it even makes it into the squash.
- You can totally eat the squash skin. Not only does the skin help hold the shape of the squash, but the squash is roasted long enough that the skin becomes very tender so there is no need to peel it off. I like to give it a final seasoning right before serving. Yum!
- It is just so dang cute! I think it's important to have a gorgeous centerpiece for your holiday feast, whether it be Thanksgiving, Christmas, or any other time you want to celebrate with loved ones. With this stuffed roasted butternut squash you get all of the wow factor a good feast deserves.
TO MAKE STUFFED ROASTED BUTTERNUT SQUASH:
Start by cutting your butternut squash in half lengthwise. Scoop out and discard the seeds, then put both halves on a baking tray cut side up. Drizzle a little olive oil on top of each squash and rub around to coat. Bake for 60 to 75 minutes until the squash is cooked and fork tender. The timing may vary a bit depending on the size of your squash.
Once baked, remove the squash from the oven. Let it cool enough so that you can handle it. Scoop out the flesh in the centre of both squash halves, leaving about a 1-inch border all around. I like to score a line 1-inch from the edges with the tip of my spoon before I start scooping so I have a guide to follow.
Set aside the scooped out squash flesh and chop it up.
In the meantime when the squash is baking, you can prepare the stuffing. In a large pan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. When hot sauté the carrots, celery, onion, and garlic until the veggies soften and begin to brown.
Add the wild rice and veggie broth to the pan, give it a stir, then cover and bring to a simmer. Cook for 10 minutes. Now add the white rice to the pan, cover, and continue to cook another 8 to 10 minutes until the rice has cooked and fully absorbed the broth. Add in the walnuts, dried cranberries, sage, thyme, salt, and pepper.
Add in the scooped out and chopped squash flesh once you have it. Stir everything to combine well. Omnomnom.
Pack in as much of the stuffing into both sides of the squash as you can. You will likely have leftovers, but I like to pack it in nice and firmly and make both sides heaping full. Pick up one squash half and flip it on top of the other. Use kitchen string to tie up the squash in 3 or 4 places holding it together. At this point you can choose to let it cool, cover with foil and store in the fridge for up to 3 days until ready to bake. Or you can bake it right away.
When you are ready to bake, lightly brush the top with oil. Bake uncovered for 20 to 35 minutes until hot all the way through. Season the top with a cracked pepper, and an extra sprinkle of chopped sage.
The slices are tender and will easily fall apart, to help hold them together use a wide spatula, and carefully transfer them to the plate. Serve hot with Quick Onion Gravy.
Bon Appetegan!
Sam.
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Stuffed Roasted Butternut Squash
Servings: (depending on the size of your squash)
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Ingredients
For the butternut squash:
- 1 butternut squash
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
For the stuffing:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
- 2 ribs celery, chopped
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ cup wild rice, (see notes)
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- ½ cup white rice, (I used basmati)
- ½ cup walnuts, chopped
- ½ cup dried cranberries
- 1 teaspoon fresh sage, chopped
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme leaves
- 1 recipe Quick Onion Gravy, (optional for serving)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350F (180C).
- To make the butternut squash: Cut the butternut squash in half lengthwise. Scoop out and discard the seeds, then put both halves on a baking tray, cut side up. Drizzle the olive oil on top of each squash and rub around to coat. Bake for 60 to 75 minutes until the squash is cooked and fork tender. The timing may vary a bit depending on the size of your squash. Be careful not to overcook the squash as it will still bake more when assembled and heated later on.
- Once baked, remove the squash from the oven. Let it cool enough so that you can handle it. Scoop out the flesh in the center of both squash halves, leaving about a 1-inch border all around. I like to score a line with the tip of my spoon 1-inch from the edges before I start scooping so I have a guide to follow. Set aside the scooped out squash flesh and chop it up.
- To make the stuffing: In the meantime when the squash is baking, you can prepare the stuffing. In a large pan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. When hot sauté the carrots, celery, onion, and garlic until the veggies soften and begin to brown. Add the wild rice and veggie broth to the pan, give it a stir, then cover and bring to a simmer. Cook for 10 minutes. Now add the white rice to the pan, cover, and continue to cook another 8 to 10 minutes until the rice has cooked and fully absorbed the broth. Add in the walnuts, dried cranberries, sage, thyme, salt, and pepper. When ready, add in the scooped out and chopped squash flesh. Stir well to combine.
- To stuff the squash: Pack in as much of the stuffing into both sides of the squash as you can. You will likely have leftovers, but I like to pack it in nice and firmly and make both sides heaping full. Optional Stacking: Leave the halves as they are, or stack them for presentation. To stack, carefully flip one half on top of the other. Use kitchen twine to tie the squash together in 3–4 places for stability.
- When you are ready to bake, lightly brush the top with more olive oil. Bake for 20 to 35 minutes until hot all the way through. Season the top with cracked pepper, and a sprinkle of chopped sage. The slices are tender and will easily fall apart, to help hold them together use a wide spatula, and carefully transfer them to the plate. Serve hot with Quick Onion Gravy.
Notes
Nutrition
⭐ Did You Make This Recipe?
I’d love if you left a rating and comment, it helps others find the recipe and makes my day! 💕
Job says
I'd love to try this for Christmas, but am I the only one who has trouble cutting the squash? I did acorn squash for Thanksgiving and it was terrible trying to cut it in half. I tried several knives.
Sam Turnbull says
Haha, yeah it can be tricky for sure. A large sharp knife is key.
Kylee says
I cranberry believe how delicious this! I plan on making it all the thyme, no matter the season! I'm cooking this for a work potluck tomorrow and they walnut believe this vegan dish tastes so good! Thank you for sharing!
And to anyone reading... you butternut pass this recipe up if you carrot all about delectable, healthy food!
Sam Turnbull says
Bahahahahaha! Love it so much! Comment of the day for sure. Thanks Kylee 🙂
Kylee says
Glad you enjoyed it
Katie says
I absolutely loved reading your response. Adorable!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'm making this for Christmas!
Eden says
Haha! I’m a bit late in reading your comment, but it is with great thanksgiving that I award you with the “comment of the year,” Kylee! Your comment squashes out the rest and comes out on top! I’m not trying to roast or insalt the other comments! They are all great, but yours is un-can-ny and made me smile!
Lyanne Larose says
I'm an avid blog reader and love to take the ideas I find on the internet and make magic in my kitchen.
I pretty much never reply to blog posts because.. well I'm usually too busy cooking 😉
I have a stuffed squash in the oven right now and I must say, that stuffing is divine and we can wait to eat the whole thing when it's hot! Pro tip: we added a chia egg to the stuffing and that really helped keep it semi solid!!
Thanks for sharing, I suspect a rendition of this dish will become a regular thing around here!
Sam Turnbull says
Aww so flattered you took the time to leave a comment, Lyanne! Thrilled you love it so much already. 😀
Colleen says
I have fresh cranberries, do you think they'll work, also do you wrap the squash when baking. Thanks for the lovely recipe. Happy holidays
Sam Turnbull says
Hi Colleen, I think fresh cranberries would be too wet and sour. In this recipe, dried cranberries provide a nice chew and sweetness. I don't wrap the squash I just bake as is. Enjoy!
Pam Jones says
Did anyone have trouble with the filling falling out when you cut into it? I'd like to make it for Thanksgiving but am worried that the slices are not going to look as pretty as the ones in the picture.
Sam Turnbull says
Hi Pam! The filling is not very compact so yes, it will likely fall out. If you use a wide knife it makes it easier to serve as one whole piece. Hope that helps.
Lisa says
I didn't have a problem at all. It could be because I used red rice instead of wild- a bit sticky-er and mushed in the squash which really held it together. Also, I cut with a serrated knife into 1" slices and used a flat spatula to transfer each slice to my guest's plate. Actually, they served themselves, but no problems.
I made this for a vegan guest, but made an extra one because I knew meat eaters would want to sample- I received more compliments on this than the beef tenderloin I made from the traditional meat and potatoes group.
Sam Turnbull says
Wonderful to hear, Lisa!!! 🙂
Cheryl says
This is going to take the place of my traditional tofurkey this year for Thanksgiving! I can't wait to try it. My only question is, can I substitute something for the sage (maybe rosemary or additional thyme)? I'm not a fan of sage.
Sam Turnbull says
Yay! I hope you love it, Cheryl! Yes, rosemary or thyme would be perfect. Enjoy 🙂
2busygal says
This looks delish. This weekend is Cnd. Thanksgiving, I'm going to studff and roast a pumpkin as my centerpiece, but will use this stuffing recipe with the butternut squash inside the pumpkin. It was exactly what I was looking for with cranberries, walnuts and wild rice. The mix of the 2 squash flavours should be good.
Sam Turnbull says
Sounds delish! I'm Canadian too, happy Thanksgiving 🙂
Amy says
There's out pretty good. Bought the wrong rice -- as already cooked. Saved some time. Easter dinner
Sam Turnbull says
Hope you enjoyed!
Beck says
Had this for dinner tonight- the 3 carnivores were fighting the two vegetarians for it
It was so good! Such a creative idea! I used quinoa in place of rice, worked great!
Thinking ahead- this will be a beautiful replacement for our typical Tofurkey on Thanksgiving!!!
Sam Turnbull says
Hahaha! Love that story, the carnivores fighting for the veggies! So happy everyone enjoyed it 🙂
Brenda says
Just made this , it is excellent thankyou!
Sam Turnbull says
Woohoo! So happy you enjoyed it 🙂
Emily Honeycutt says
This is the best idea EVER!! Why didn't I think of that???
Sam Turnbull says
Hahahaha, well thank you Emily!
Nicole Clement says
I tried this and it is DELICIOUS. I did it a little differently-I already had some butternut squash that was cooked, so I made the other ingredients and then layered them all on top of each other in a casserole dish and baked in the oven. So it wasn't quite as pretty as the whole-squash-with-stuffing picture, but it was really yummy. Thank you Sam!
Sam Turnbull says
Yay! So happy you loved it Nicole. Your versions sounds fantastic too 🙂
Franceyne says
This was our center piece on the Christmas table and everyone loved it.
I had to add more water to keep the rice cooking but I have a very hot stove top (even when turned down low).
Thank you Sam, this was delicious and looked wonderful.
Sam Turnbull says
So happy everyone loved it Franceyne, and honoured it was your center piece! 🙂
mark guncheon says
I made this for our Christmas dinner. It was delicious but the wild rice needed more time to cook. Maybe increase the amount of broth and give the wild rice a longer cooking time.
Thanks.
Sam Turnbull says
Ah, I guess different wild rice types will vary a bit, I will add a note. Thanks Mark!
Mark Guncheon says
I mentioned this to my daughter as she was eating the last of the leftovers and she was impressed that I reached out to you but then reminded me how delicious it was. Indeed plus I loved the presentation with the slices laid on the decorative plate we had for the holiday dinner.
Thanks.
Sam Turnbull says
Glad you enjoyed it 🙂
Fran says
You are a blessing! I've been craving butternut squash for "some reason", and this is it. Making it for Christmas dinner 🙂 Thank you Sam!
Sam Turnbull says
Perfect! I hope it goes over splendidly at Christmas! 🙂
Susan Iseman says
Thanks- can't wait to try this- Merrie Christmas!!!
Sam Turnbull says
I hope you love it! Merry Christmas!
Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine says
Ah, this is so awesome! Love it so much!!! This will wow the meat eaters into being plant-based 😉
Sam Turnbull says
That is my evil plan, muhahahahahaha!
Bethany says
This looks so very good! I'm excited to try it in the not too distant future. I am wondering how the squash skin is when eating. Do you need to eat around it, or is it tender enough to enjoy eating? Thanks!
Sam Turnbull says
Aha! I knew I was forgetting something in the post, I meant to mention that, thanks for the reminder! I have now updated the post, yes the squash skin gets lovely and tender and is totally edible. Just give your squash a good cleaning before preparing it. That's why I like to oil and season the skin as well 🙂
Bethany says
Thanks so much! Yay 😀
Debbie Templeton says
Oh my gosh!!! This sounds AMAZE-BALLs!! I can't wait to try it!
Sam Turnbull says
Thank you so much Debbie! I can't wait for you to try it either! 😀
MsKellyO says
This looks amazing!! I am looking at this for Christmas dinner ... I love butternut squash but I'm not really a rice person , do you think it is likely to turn out well with quinoa instead ?
Sam Turnbull says
Yes it would! The cooking time will be way less tho, follow the directions on the quinoa package for guidance 🙂
Julie Peterson says
This looks so AMAZING! Easy, healthy and beautiful. I'll be making this soon for sure.
Sam Turnbull says
Yay!! I hope you love it 🙂