Turkey Stuffed Acorn Squash

Before you swear off turkey for the next 11 months, let's turn that fridge stash into something worth craving. Cue my ground turkey stuffed acorn squash bowls which are equally cozy, flavorful. It's wholesome, hearty, and just what you need to ease back into real-life dinners after the holiday chaos.

If you cringe at the sight of yet another night of holiday leftovers, you're not alone. Similar to my ground turkey sweet potatoes, this stuffed acorn squash with turkey is the ultimate way to give those Thanksgiving extras a whole new life.

Trusted Tips and Key Reminders

1. Don't waste any time when the acorn squash are in the oven. After 10 minutes of cooking in the oven, fire up a pot of water or broth for the rice, then after the rice begins to cook, brown the ground turkey so that everything finishes at the same time to assemble and serve.
2. Remember to scoop the seeds out before roasting, it's a lot easier to do when the squash are not soft.
3. Use a generous amount of olive oil to roast the squash. This will help the squash soften and become flavorful.
4. Cook the acorn squash cut side down!

The Main Ingredients

1. Acorn Squash - Acorn squash are essentially the cousin of a butternut squash with a slightly sweeter and more yellow flesh. They're mild, and absorb a ton of flavor.
2. Ground Turkey - Ground turkey is one of my favorite proteins to use in recipes like my Italian baked turkey meatballs. It's versatile and lean, but can easily be swapped for ground chicken, beef, or even sausage.
3. Seasonings - Warm seasonings like paprika, coriander, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and for a little kick, crushed red pepper help give the entire dish such a depth of flavor it's hard to resist. (when your 2 year old is eating it by the fistful, you know it's a win).
4. Olive Oil - A neutral oil is perfect to slather all over the cut squash right before it roasts.
5. Rice - I like using a jasmine rice for this recipe as it's softer, creamier, and fluffs up nicely.
6. Broth - For cooking the rice, I typically opt for broth or a stock to get more flavor into the rice.

Simple Recipe Swaps and Subs

• Swap out the acorn squash for delicata or butternut squash. You can also use spaghetti squash!
• If you'd prefer to use a different protein like ground chicken, beef, lamb, chorizo, sausage, or even plant-based ground meat that works great here.
• Melt some cheese on top by sprinkling some shredded mozzarella cheese and broiling until golden and melty.
• Amp up the ingredients with black beans, sautéed spinach, garbanzo beans, or arugula.

How to make ground turkey stuffed acorn squash

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 400º. Slice the acorn squash in half lengthwise to form four halves. Scoop out the insides and rub with olive oil. Turn flesh/cut side down, then roast for 30-35 minutes.

Step 2: As the acorn squash cooks in the oven, begin to prepare the ground turkey over a medium high heat. Brown until 75% cooked through, then add in the seasonings. Continue to cook until fully browned, then set aside.

Step 3: Boil 2 cups of water or broth, then add in the 1 cup of rice. Bring heat to a simmer and cook until liquid is fully absorbed. Once cooked through, add the rice directly into the ground turkey and mix to combine.

Step 4: Add 2-3 scoops of the ground turkey and rice mixture to the inside of the acorn squash, top with fresh thyme then serve with a final drizzle of olive oil.

Acorn Squash FAQs