Stuffed Sage Carnival Squash

Carnival squash. Have you heard of it? I had never! It came to me on a chilly, leafless and blustery day, neatly packed in my CSA box. Speckled, mostly green and yellow, with odd pools of vibrant orange marked it's skin. Carnival squash is probably most akin to acorn squash, but delightfully unique in its own way. 

This little guy is lovingly filled with only the most scrumptious of autumn goodies. Honeycrisp apples, earthy sage, crunchy pepitas, silky red chard, Field Roast Smoked Apple Sage Grain-Meat Sausage, and pumpkin. Oh yes, we are now filling winter squash with pureed pumpkin.

This is how the pros do it. 

“How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world”

— Anne Frank

You guys are going to love this squash! This is an easy and impressive festive squash stuffed with apples, kale, pumpkin, and vegan sausage. It’s the perfect star or companion of any Thanksgiving dinner.

Stuffed Sage Carnival Squash

By Katie Henry - Produce On Parade

This is an easy and impressive festive carnival squash stuffed with apples, kale, pumpkin, and vegan sausage. It’s the perfect star or companion of any Thanksgiving dinner.

Ingredients

• 1 carnival or acorn squash, halved
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 red onion, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tsp. kosher salt
• ¼ tsp. ground black pepper
• ¼ tsp. ground sage
• 1 small apple, diced
• 1 Smoked Apple Sage Field Roast Grain-Meat Sausage link, diced.
• 4 large kale or swiss chard leaves and stems, chopped
• ½ 15 oz. canned pumpkin
• 1 Tbsp. maple syrup
• 2 Tbsp. pepitas

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 425° F. Cut the squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Place face down on a baking sheet coated with a nonstick cooking spray. Bake for about 30-40 minutes, until tender when pierced with a fork.
2. Meanwhile, in a large rimmed frying pan, heat the olive oil over medium low. Add the onion and garlic. Sauté until fragrant, about 5 minutes.
3. Now, stir in the salt, pepper, and sage. Add the apple, sausage, and kale. Sauté over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until the kale is wilted.
4. Add the remaining ingredients, mixing well to combine. Stir occasionally while over medium heat for about 8-10 minutes. The apples should be softened but not cooked through. Remove from heat to rest, until the squash is done baking.
5. When squash is done, keep the oven on, and divide the stuffing evenly between each squash half filling the center. Place back in the oven for about 3 minutes to heat through. Remove from the oven and serve hot.

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 00:45
Total time: 00:50
Yield: 2 servings

More Easy Squash Recipes

Smoked Gouda and Butternut Pasta

Eggnog Roasted Acorn Squash

Herbed Acorn Squash Bisque

Cheesy Stuffed Autumn Delicata Squash

Dutch Word of The Day

Stuffed --> gevuld (who-feld)

Good Deed of The Day

Milk. It does the body bad. Real bad. A new study from the British Medicine Journal "...found that those who drank three glasses of milk daily were more likely to die of heart disease and cancer. For the women, milk drinkers had a significant better chance of suffering a hip fracture." Yikes. Maybe it's time to switch to one of the other thousand non-dairy options, yea?