Beef Enchilada Stuffed Acorn Squash

Written by on in Beef, Easy & Quick Meals, Healthy-ish

The recipe is from The Defined Dish Blog!

I don’t know what took me so long to finally make an acorn squash recipe. I wasn’t sure what it would taste like, but I loved it. I liked the consistency a lot. It was slightly similar to butternut squash but less stringy.

Ingredients:

  • For the Acorn Squash
    • 2 medium sized Acorn Squashes
    • 2 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
    • 1/4 teaspoon Kosher Salt
  • For the Beef
    • 1 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
    • 1 cup yellow onion, finely diced (or 1/2 medium onion)
    • 1 pound Ground Beef
    • 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
    • 1/2 teaspoon Black Pepper
    • 1/4 teaspoon Cayenne
    • 1 teaspoon Cumin
    • 1 teaspoon Paprika
    • 1 teaspoon Chili Powder
    • 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
    • 1/2 teaspoon Dried Oregano
    • 1.5 Tablespoons Ghee
    • 2 Tablespoons Tomato Paste
    • 2/3 cup Beef Broth
    • 1/2 Avocado, sliced, for serving
    • 1/4 cup Pico de Gallo, for serving
    • 2 Tablespoons freshly chopped Cilantro, for serving

Preparation:

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. Place the squash horizontally on a cutting board. Trim the ends off of the squash by cutting just enough of the pointy tip off in order to create a more flat bottom, taking care not to cut too far as to get into the hollow part of the squash. Now, cut each acorn squash in half, horizontally. Then, scoop out seeds and stringy bits inside the squash (I find using an ice cream scoop works best), being careful not to break a hole in the bottom of the cavity.
  3. Place acorn squash cut side up on the baking sheet and brush the flesh all over with olive oil, until evenly coated. Sprinkle with salt.
  4. Bake in oven until the flesh of the squash is fork tender, about 35-45 minutes, depending on the size of your squash.
  5. Meanwhile, while your squash is baking- heat a skillet over medium-high heat with olive oil. Add the onion and ground beef and season with salt and pepper. Brown the beef, breaking up the meat with the back of a spoon until no longer pink, about 5-7 minutes. Drain off excess fat if needed.
  6. Reduce heat to medium and add the cayenne, cumin, paprika, chili, garlic, and dried oregano. Toss spices to incorporate with beef until fragrant and lightly toasted, about 1-2 minutes.
  7. Add ghee and melt, stir to combine. Add tomato paste and stir until incorporated with meat.
  8. Reduce heat to medium-low and add beef broth. Cook, stirring, until sauce thickens, about 1-2 minutes.
  9. Remove from heat and cover to keep warm until acorn squash are cooked.
  10. Once squash are cooked, evenly distribute beef mixture among squash by filling the cavities of the squash.
  11. Garnish with cilantro, pico de gallo and avocado.
  12. Serve and enjoy!