Want a delicious dinner or stunning side to celebrate the season? Try stuffed butternut squash! Sure, it’s not as common to stuff this popular squash as its cousin the acorn squash. But baked until it’s tender and sweet, it comes out just as tasty (or even more!). This recipe stars a vegetable and rice stuffing with garlic, kale, sage and pecans: fall flavors that accentuate the orange squash perfectly. It’s perfect for a fall dinner, Thanksgiving, or anytime you need a cozy meal.
Ingredients in stuffed butternut squash
Stuffed butternut squash is a tasty dish that works as a fall main course, or a side dish for a festive gathering. It takes about 1 hour to complete, so make it when you’ve got time set aside or follow the make ahead tips below. While the squash roasts, make the simple rice and vegetable filling. Then you’ll hollow out the roasted squash, chop up that portion and mix it back into the filling: so there’s no waste at all! Here are the ingredients you’ll need:
Butternut squash (small) White basmati or long grain rice Butter Onion, garlic, celery, and kale Dried sage, dried thyme, oregano, salt, and pepper Cream cheese Milk Parmesan cheese Pecans
Look for small butternut squash
The size of the butternut squash is important for this recipe. Each eater will get one half of the squash, and a large butternut squash is much too large of a portion. It’s nice to have small butternut squash because they make a portion sized-vessel, much like with stuffed acorn squash. If all you can find is a large butternut squash, you can make four portions by slicing the squash in half length-wise. However, it doesn’t have the same look: so it’s nice to find small squashes if at all possible.
Alternative stuffing ideas
This stuffed butternut squash is vegetarian as written in the recipe below, and it’s easily made vegan. Want a meat-based stuffing, or some other ideas? Here are some alternative stuffing ideas:
Italian-style sausage stuffing (or plant-based): Make the stuffing from this Stuffed Zucchini Boats recipe. You can also make this with plant-based sausage and it’s delicious. Beef and rice stuffing (or plant-based): Make the stuffing from these Stuffed Green Peppers. It also works with plant-based beef crumbles.
In many of these cases you’ll likely have leftover filling, so you could roast another small butternut squash (if it fits on the tray!) or serve extras on the side.
Make ahead and serving tips
This stuffed butternut squash recipe takes 1 hour to prepare, so it’s not intended as a fast and easy meal. Here are a few tips for making this recipe in advance or scaling it up for large gatherings:
Make the filling in advance. Make the rice filling in advance, then refrigerate until serving. Before stuffing the squash, re-warm it on the stovetop. Roast the butternut squash in advance. Even better, roast the squash in advance. Remove the inner portion, chop and add to the filling (if made in advance). Refrigerate the squash until serving. Before serving, re-warm the filling on the stovetop, stuff, top with Parmesan, and bake the squash for about 30 minutes until warmed through. If serving for a crowd, roast the squash in advance. This recipe is great for smaller dinner parties or Thanksgiving gatherings. It’s tough to make in large quantities because the more butternut squash you have in the oven, the longer it takes. If you roast 4 small squashes, increase the baking time (it can take up to 1 hour depending on your oven and the squash size). Anything above 8 portions is best prepared in advance in batches.
More butternut squash recipes
Love cooking with squash? Here are a few more tasty butternut squash recipes to enjoy this season:
Grab classic Roasted Butternut Squash or Butternut Squash Soup Try Butternut Squash Lasagna Opt for creamy Butternut Squash Puree or Mashed Butternut Squash Try Butternut Squash Curry Grab Butternut Squash Pasta or Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese
This butternut squash recipe is…
Vegetarian and gluten-free. For vegan and dairy-free, use vegan butter in place of the butter and cream cheese (see below) and omit the Parmesan cheese. 5 from 1 review **This recipe is tough to multiply because the more butternut squash you have in the oven, the longer it takes. If you roast 4 small squashes, increase the baking time (it can take up to 1 hour depending on your oven and the squash size). Anything above 8 portions is best prepared in advance in batches.
