Stuffed Acorn vs. Butternut Squash Showdown! Not really.

You want the honest truth? I only made this because I needed to use a butternut squash and refused to peel it or cut it more than in half. And you know where that got me? I cut my palm open while cutting an acorn squash in half. Moral of the story? When it comes to winter squashes, you just can't trust them....but keep dealing with them because they are so, so delicious.

So here's a recipe.

Serves 4-6

What you need:

2-3 squashes (butternut or acorn or combination thereof) 2 squashes will allow some leftover stuffing, 3 squashes will use it all.

2 carrots, sliced

2 celery stalks, sliced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 C raisins

1/2 bell pepper, chopped

1 C quinoa, rinsed

14 oz (1 can) of broth of your choice

1.5-2 T. cumin

salt and pepper to taste

What to do:

• Preheat oven to 400.
• Slice your squashes in half and scoop out the seeds. Be careful, please. Microwaving for a couple minutes (after a couple of knife-pokes) helps soften them up.
• Place squashes, cut-side down, in a baking pan with about 1/2 an inch of water, to help the steaming, and put them in the oven. Set timer for 30 minutes.
• Heat some olive oil in a pan on the stove, and saute the carrots and celery until soft, 5-6 minutes. Add garlic and saute some more. Add cumin, peppers, raisins, salt and pepper, and turn heat to low.
• In a separate pan, put chicken or other broth and turn to high. Rinse quinoa, and add to pan when boiling. Cover pot and lower heat to simmer. It should take about 10 minutes.
• Check squash, if soft, take out of oven and cover.
• When quinoa is done, add to pan of veggies.
• When squash is done, add a scoop to each squash. Enjoy with a green salad!

Verdict:

Love it!

What I don't love? My pictures...I got a new camera and I'm not sure how to force it to use the flash...so it's even harder to make food pictures that look good...bear with me!