February Recipe: Lentil-Stuffed Acorn Squash

In the interests of full disclosure, I did not invent this recipe. One of my friends made a version of it (I think without the mushrooms, certainly without the red pepper) for this past Thanksgiving dinner. Since then, I’ve played around with the basic concept, experimenting with the stuffing — both in terms of main ingredients and in terms of seasoning. I’m not sure if I’m posting this particular version because I like it best — though I do like it — or because pre-packaged ingredients render it more manageable for times like weekday dinners.

Dietary note: To my knowledge, this doesn’t contain anything that’s ungood for folks with common dietary allergens or other restrictions.

Lentil Filling:

1 lb. cooked lentils — I used a 17.6 oz. package of steamed lentils from Trader Joe’s for this one, though in the past I’ve made my own.
2 cups chopped mushrooms — I use fresh, but I expect canned stems and pieces would work too.
thyme — I used 2 tbsp. fresh, but have had success with dried before — I just don’t remember the dried amount.
garlic powder — I always use it and never measure it anymore. To taste.
splash of oil
splash of red pepper flakes — If spicy isn’t your thing, you could substitute black pepper, white pepper, or no pepper.

Acorn Squash:

I am quite sure the lentil and mushroom filling will fill 3 acorn squash halves (so 1.5 acorn squash). I think it should fill 4 halves (so 2 squash), but my confidence level on that isn’t high enough to guarantee it.

Procedure:

1. Slice the acorn squash in half, scoop out the seeds and stringy goop, and set them in whatever baking pan you prefer. I’ve done them face down in an open dish in a half inch of water; I’ve done them face up in a closed dish. It all pretty well works. If you have a preference for baking acorn squash, you do you.
2. Cook the squash until it’s just getting ready to be soft enough, about half its total cooking time. If you’re looking for numbers and such, 30 minutes at 350 is not a bad guideline.
3. While the squash is in its first phase of cooking, cook up the lentil stuffing. (This will probably not take the whole 30 minutes. It’s fine to get the stuffing set, then let it sit on the stove for a few.)
4. Stick a skillet over medium heat; add the splash of oil. If using fresh mushrooms, add the mushrooms first and heat until they’re cooked through. There will need to be some stirring in this part. If using canned mushrooms — make sure they’re drained, toss them in, and proceed directly to the next step.
5. When the mushrooms are not raw anymore, add in the lentils. More stirring.
6. And the spices — thyme, garlic, and black and/or red pepper — more stirring.
7. Turn the heat down to simmer until the acorn squash have been in the oven for ~30 minutes. Done with the stirring; I promise.
8. Pull the acorn squash out of the oven and situate them so they’re “face up” — that is, so the hole that the stuffing will go in is visible. Spoon stuffing mixture into the hollow where the seeds and stringy goop used to be. I am a fan of gently pressing with the back of the spoon to get a good, dense amount of stuffing in each squash half.
9. Stick the stuffed squash back in the oven and cook uncovered for another 30 minutes.
10. Squash is done when the squash is soft enough and the filling is hot all the way through. I think I probably cook longer than is strictly necessary, but I think it helps get some of the spicy filling flavor into the sweetness of the squash. Anyway, let these sit out of the oven for just a minute or two before serving — because they will be hot.

I am a fan of the concept of stuffed squash in general. And though, as I mentioned, I’ve tried a lot of different filling components, I think I find this one the most workable. And I think that is because I’m relying on at least one convenience food — the pre-packaged lentils — to make the prep time more manageable.

I mean, an hour of cooking time is already kind of tricky to mange, particularly on nights that are “school nights” for both of us. I would not want to add significant active prep time — say, making a filling that required more than 10 minutes of being at the stove — because that would render the recipe impractical for use in regular weekday rotation.

Still, I had to get over myself a bit for using the ready-steamed lentils. Because, you know — ZOMG, processed! ZOMG, sodium! And stuff. Which — another recipe that illustrates some of my personal food morality baggage.