Quick Look: Sausage and Apple Stuffed Acorn Squash Halves
- Ready In: about 1 hour
- Serves: 6
- Main Ingredients: acorn squash, Italian sausage, apple, onion, celery, sourdough bread, Italian seasoning, and parmesan cheese!
- Dietary Info: dairy-free friendly and gluten-free friendly
- Best For: hearty fall or winter dinner, Thanksgiving side dish
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Reasons to Love Stuffed Acorn Squash
- Delicious savory flavors with a touch of sweetness coming from the crisp apple!
- Acorn squash + sourdough stuffing mixture = the BEST of fall.
- A complete meal in one half of acorn squash.
- Prep ahead tips for an easy weeknight dinner or holiday side dish!
Key Ingredients + Substitutions
Be sure to see the recipe card below for a full listing of ingredients, instructions, and estimated nutritional information.
- Sausage – we used our local grocery store’s sweet Italian sausage. It has a mild but substantial flavor. Feel free to use any mild or hot Italian sausage.
- Apple – love the firmness and sweetness of a honey crisp apple to balance the savory flavors, but feel free to use another variety that you prefer.
- Bread – during testing we found the firmness of sourdough provided a wonderful texture to the stuffing without getting too mushy (also why this bread is chosen for our best ever sourdough stuffing).
How To Make Sausage and Apple Stuffed Acorn Squash
Step 1 – Season the acorn squash halves with oil, salt, and pepper. Roast for 30 minutes or until fork-tender.
Step 2 – Brown the sausage and then add the onion, celery, and garlic to soften for 1-2 minutes.
Step 3 – Add the diced apple, sourdough, and chicken broth.
Step 4 – Move around to soften and combine for 1-2 minutes.
Make Ahead Tips
Option to either roast the squash and make the stuffing mixture ahead of time to store separately in the fridge. Or go ahead and stuff the squash, cover the pan, refrigerate, and then remove the cover to bake. If you put them in the oven straight from the fridge they will need longer to bake.
Step 5 – Divide the stuffing between the roasted squash halves and top with parmesan cheese. Return to the oven for 5-10 minutes or until the cheese has melted.
Erin’s Testing Tips: What We Learned
– Sausage: we used sweet Italian sausage and loved the flavoring with the few simple seasonings used in the recipe card. Feel free to use spicy Italian sausage for a little kick of heat or increase some of the seasonings if you have a really mild sausage.
– Squash Size: the overall cook time when roasting squash will depend on their size and thickness. During testing, our roasting squash was fork-tender in 30 minutes. You will need to start checking your squash at 30 minutes and continue baking if it is not fork-tender.
– Stuffing Texture: when testing this recipe, we found that we loved the texture of the stuffing with a more crisp apple and slightly softened bread with only 2 tablespoons of chicken broth. If you prefer a softer stuffing mixture, you can add more chicken broth 1 tablespoon at a time until it is soft enough. The apples can also be cooked for another 1-2 minutes to make them softer.
Other Holiday Side Dishes You Might Like
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Ingredients
- 3 acorn squash, halved & seeds removed
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- kosher salt and ground black pepper
- 1 pound Italian sausage, sweet or spicy
- ¼ cup yellow onion
- 1 celery stalk, thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
- 1 honey crisp apple, diced fairly small (sub any sweet red apple)
- 2 slices sourdough bread, diced
- 2 tablespoons chicken broth, more, if needed
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ½ cup parmesan cheese, shredded (sub dairy-free alternative)
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat oven to 400℉.
- Bake Squash: Place the acorn squash halves on a large baking sheet with the cut-side up. Rub 1 tablespoon olive oil over the inside flesh of the squash and season with kosher salt and ground black pepper. Move to the oven to bake for 30 minutes, check to see if it is done by piercing with a fork. It should be soft enough to easily insert the fork. If not, continue baking in 5-10 minute increments until it is ready.
- Brown + Sauté: While the squash is baking, bring a large skillet to a medium-high heat. Add 1 pound Italian sausage, break apart and move around the pan to brown. Once fully cooked, drain any excess grease (if needed), and add the diced onion, sliced celery, and 1 teaspoon garlic. Move around the pan to soften for 1-2 minutes.
- Finish Stuffing: Add the diced apple, diced sourdough bread, 2 tablespoons chicken broth, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, and ¼ teaspoon Italian seasoning to the pan. Stir to combine and soften the bread for 1–2 minutes. If you prefer a more mushy stuffing mixture, feel free to add 1-2 more tablespoons of chicken broth.
- Fill Squash: Remove the squash from the oven when it is ready. Divide the stuffing mixture into all of the roasted acorn squash halves. Sprinkle shredded parmesan cheese on top.
- Bake: Return the stuffed squash to the oven for 5-10 minutes or until the cheese has melted.
- Serve: Enjoy immediately!
Notes
- Acorn Squash Prep: the bottoms of the acorn squash halves might need to be cut for them to sit flat on the baking sheet.
- Gluten-Free: use a gluten-free bread in the stuffing mixture.
- Dairy-Free: omit the parmesan cheese or use a dairy-free alternative.
- Prep Ahead: option to roast the squash, prep the stuffing, and wait on the final bake until just before serving. This would be a great option for the holidays when the kitchen gets so busy. Just remember if you put the stuffed squash in the oven cold, they will need to bake longer to fully warm through.
- Storage: leftover stuffed squash can be stored in an airtight container or wrapped in aluminum foil. Store in the fridge for 24-48 hours and highly recommend reheating in an oven at 400°F until warmed all the way through.
Nutrition
Original post published on 12/6/18. Retested and new photos added on 10/14/26.
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