When the cooler weather starts to set in, I delve into my recipes to create some warm, comforting meals. You will often find me keeping busy in the kitchen on those blustery fall days.

Pumpkins and squash make quite a few appearances between the start of school and the winter holidays.

When my children were babies, I would roast butternut and acorn squashes and process them into a fine puree.

I had lots of fun coming up with different fruit and vegetable combinations. Squash and apple always paired well together. I even enjoyed a few spoonfuls myself.

Stuffed acorn squash makes a delicious meal or side dish paired with turkey or chicken. You can use a combination of any of your favorite ingredients from savory to sweet to compliment your meal.

Remembering how much we loved the combination of squash and apples, I decided to experiment with a stuffing of apples, nuts, and cranberries.

The results were as good as I thought that they’d be. This is THE taste of Autumn distilled down into one bite!

Make this for your family for a weekend treat or prepare it for a Thanksgiving or Christmas celebration – either way, it’s going to be a hit.

Print Acorn Squash Stuffed With Apples, Nuts and Cranberries ★★★★★ 5 from 1 reviews Author: Jennifer Swartvagher

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 60 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes

Yield: 4 servings 1 x Print Recipe Pin Recipe Description Looking for a tasty fall treat? Try these acorn squash stuffed with autumn goodness. Apples and nuts just shout “harvest time.” Scale 1x 2x 3x Ingredients 2 acorn squash

acorn squash 2 apples (peeled and chopped)

apples (peeled and chopped) 3/4 cup dried cranberries

dried cranberries 3/4 cup walnuts (chopped)

walnuts (chopped) 2 tablespoon s cinnamon ((or to taste))

s cinnamon ((or to taste)) 1/2 cup dark brown sugar

dark brown sugar 3 tablespoon s butter or vegan butter (softened) Instructions Preheat oven to 350°F. Cut squash in half longways. Remove seeds and pulp. Pour ¼ cup water into a baking dish and add squash cut side down. Place baking dish in the oven and bake for 30 minutes. In a large mixing bowl, combine apples, cranberries, walnuts, cinnamon, brown sugar, and butter. Remove squash from oven and let cool. Turn over the halves and stuff the center of each squash with the apple/cranberry mixture. Return to oven and bake for an additional 30 minutes or until tender. Category: Autumn Foods

Method: Baking

Cuisine: American Keywords: autumn, acorn squash, thanksgiving, fall, Christmas Cooking By The Numbers… Step One – Prepare Squash First, preheat your oven to 350 degree Fahrenheit. Then split your squash down the middle lengthwise.

I like to use cheap knives (read Chicago Cutlery) for attacking thick skinned fruits. No way am I letting my good chef’s knife be abused in such a manner.

Step Two – Prebake

Pull out all of the seeds and connective tissue and discard or clean and and

Pour about a quarter inch of water in a baking pan and place the fruit in it flesh side down. Place in your preheated oven and bake for 30 minutes (you can get away with a bit less if you’re using convection).

I used a convection toaster oven for this but depending on the size of your squash, you may be able to fit only three halves at a time.

Step Three – Prepare the Stuffing

Peel the apples with a fruit/vegetable peeler and then dice into small chunks.

Place the brown sugar, walnuts, diced apples, cranberries, cinnamon and butter in a large mixing bowl and thoroughly mix.

Step Four – Add the Goodness

Add the mixture to the hollow cavities and place back in the oven and bake for another 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

Remove from oven and drizzle with honey if you like. Serve while still warm.

You want a perfect recipe for Fall? This is it! Cranberries, walnuts, apples, acorn squash, and a good dose of cinnamon all in one package.

Do you have other ways to prepare acorn squash? Be sure to let us know in the comments.