Holiday Winter Squash with Cranberry-Nut Stuffing
Need a recipe idea? This colourful vegetarian dish is perfect for a holiday meal or everyday dinner. Squash and Cranberries are in-season and can easily be found fresh in the fall and winter. Another benefit is that both are grown in Western Canada and northern United States, so can often be found at your local farmers markets. Can you ask for more?
Ingredients
3 Winter Squash, halved & seeded (acorn, buttercup, butternut, etc)
Filling
3 C Cranberries (fresh or frozen)
2 C Onions, diced (red or white)
3 Garlic Cloves, minced
1 stalk Celery, chopped
1 C Applesauce (unsweetened)
1 C Pecan halves
Peel and Juice from 1 Orange
¼ - ½ C Pure Maple Syrup
1 tsp Coconut Oil
½ tsp Salt/Herbamar (salt substitute)
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 375ºC
Lightly oil a baking dish. Lay squash halves cut-side down in the pan. Add ½ inch water, cover with foil and bake 30 minutes.
While squash is baking, sauté onions, garlic and celery in oil until soft. Add cranberries and salt/Herbamar, lower heat and simmer until cranberries have popped (about 10 minutes). Remove from heat and stir in applesauce, pecans, orange peel & juice and maple juice.
Note: Add just enough to offset the tart berries, not too much to make the filling sweet.
When finished pre-baking, remove the squash from the oven, flip and fill each with ½ C of cranberry filling.
Replace in the oven and bake, uncovered for 30-45 minutes until squash soft and tip is lightly browned.
Enjoy!
Dr Katarine Holewa, ND
Tags: