Make the most of seasonal acorn squash with this colorful and hearty meal that doesn’t sacrifice on flavor. The nuttiness of quinoa combined with the earthy flavors of acorn squash and fresh feta make for the perfect winter meal.
Recipe and photos by Dafna Ben-Zeev of Freshly Dafna
1. Heat oven to 425°F.
2. Prepare acorn squash by cutting the pointy tip and stem off each end (so they will sit up for serving) and then cut in half. Scoop out the seeds with a spoon. Place the squash hollow side up on the baking sheet and brush or massage 1 tbsp of oil into the flesh of each squash. Sprinkle all the squash with salt and pepper (about 1/2 tsp total).
3. Place acorn squash in the oven and bake until insides are fork tender, about 20 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, make the quinoa. Heat 1 tbsp oil over medium high heat in a medium pot and saute the onion until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes, stirring often.
5. Add the quinoa and stir to coat. Then add the kale, sun dried tomatoes, thyme, 1/2 tsp salt and broth. Stir again. Cover the pot and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce to low and simmer for 20 minutes. After the 20 minutes, turn off heat and let sit covered for 5 more minutes. Then remove the lid, fluff quinoa mix with a fork, and taste adding salt if necessary.
6. When ready to serve place a generous scoop of quinoa in each acorn squash and top it off with crumbled feta if you like.
