Name: Beans & rice stuffed squash
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 55 min
Ingredients: 1 medium acorn squash; 2 Tbsp olive oil; 1 onion; 1 clove of garlic; 1 tsp fresh thyme; 1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary; ½ tsp chilli flakes (optional); ½ cup cooked beans from a tin; 1 cup cooked rice (I used brown basmati); 1 cup finely chopped curly kale or spinach; 1 handful of hazelnuts or walnuts

Beans & rice stuffed squash

5 Jan 2017

by Dinna

Prep Time

10 minutes

Cook Time

45 minutes

Total Time

55 minutes

Background

During the winter I litre love the smell and the warming flavour of roasted squash. So I make it a lot. I also like using up efficiently any leftover food in my fridge & larder, so often I stuff the squash with some sort of creation of these. This beans & rice stuffed squash is the result of one of my fridge clearance. If you don’t have any pre-cooked brown rice, you can use couscous, quinoa, bulgur, pearl barley or rice - just cook these according to a packet instructions. Although this dish is vegan and very healthy (also gluten-free), feel free adding some leftover grilled chicken, ham, fish, fried lardons or crumbled/grated cheese to it.

Ingredients

1 medium acorn squash
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 onion
1 clove of garlic
1 tsp fresh thyme
1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
½ tsp chilli flakes (optional)
½ cup cooked beans from a tin
1 cup cooked rice (I used brown basmati)
1 cup finely chopped curly kale or spinach
1 handful of hazelnuts or walnuts

Instructions

Heat the oven to 180°C.
Cut the squash in half and spoon out the seeds. Brush the flesh with 1 teaspoon of oil, then season with salt and pepper. Put them on a baking tray and roast them for about 30 minutes, until tender.
Meanwhile chop the onion & garlic.Heat 1 Tbsp of oil in frying pan. Add the onion & garlic, then cook gently for about 5 minutes until softened, whilst stirring. Add the chopped herbs, chilli flakes (if used) and the kale/spinach. Put a lid on and steam for about 3 minutes , until the greens have wilted. Stir in the cooked rice to warm up.
When the squash is cooked through, take the tray out of the oven and scoop out some of the flesh (allow about 2cm rim). Add this the stuffing, combine well, then season with salt and pepper to your liking.
Divide the stuffing between squash halves. Roast them for a further 15 minutes until golden.
Dry-roast the nuts, cool then chop them into small pieces.