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Wild Rice Stuffed Acorn Squash

Wild rice stuffed acorn squash with nutty rice, cranberries, pecans, and crispy fried sage. Tender roasted orange halves are filled with a maple-sweet mixture for an easy vegetarian centerpiece.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings: 2 servings
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: American
Calories: 340
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

acorn squash
  • 2 acorn squash Halved and seeded.
olive oil
  • 3 tbsp olive oil Measure 1 tbsp for sautéing, remainder for frying sage.
wild rice blend
  • 1 cup wild rice blend, cooked
dried cranberries
  • 0.5 cup dried cranberries
pecans
  • 0.5 cup chopped pecans
celery
  • 2 celery stalks, diced
shallot
  • 1 shallot, minced
fresh sage leaves
  • 12 fresh sage leaves Keep leaves dry for crisping.
maple syrup
  • 2 tbsp maple syrup
salt and pepper
  • 1 Salt and pepper, to taste

Equipment

  • 1 sheet pan

Method
 

Roast the squash
  1. Heat oven to 400°F and place squash halves on a sheet pan cut-side down; roast for 30 minutes until the flesh is tender.
  2. Keep the squash warm on the pan while you make the filling.
Make the wild rice filling
  1. In a skillet over medium heat, sauté the shallot and celery in 1 tablespoon olive oil for 5 minutes, stirring until softened and fragrant.
  2. Toss the cooked wild rice blend with the sautéed shallot-celery, dried cranberries, chopped pecans, and maple syrup until evenly combined.
  3. Season the filling with salt and pepper to taste and set aside.
Make crispy sage and assemble
  1. In the remaining olive oil over medium-high heat, fry the sage leaves until crisp, about 1 minute, turning once if needed for even color.
  2. Fill each roasted squash half with the wild rice mixture and top with the crisp sage leaves just before serving.

Notes

Pro tip: cook the wild rice a day ahead and rewarm before mixing for faster assembly and better texture. Store leftovers in the fridge up to 3 days; reheat until hot through. Freezing is not recommended because the squash can soften after thawing. For a dairy-free swap, keep it as-is (already vegetarian and dairy-free), or add dairy-free buttery topping if you’d like without changing the filling.