Roasted Acorn Squash

Roasted Acorn Squash is the ultimate fall side dish packed with loads of classic fall flavors and spices!

Roasted Acorn Squash

Growing up I was very blessed to be able to have a mom who was a good cook. She almost always made things from scratch and loved to have her kiddos in the kitchen to help. I guess that’s why my brother and I both feel comfortable in the kitchen and love to experiment. Who needs a recipe! 🙂

A fall favorite for our family growing up was roasted Acorn Squash! My mom would put tons of butter and brown sugar in the center of the squash. Roast it. Then scoop out the flesh. It was absolutely amazing! The acorn squash had a sweet taste and then with the butter made it creamy. It was totally my favorite fall time side dish.

I still make it at home today, just less sugar and butter.

When I found out the ingredients for this months Mystery Dish Challenge which were:  Sweet Potato, Kale, Squash (any kind, including pumpkin), Nutmeg, Venison, Turkey, Cranberries, Caramel, and Candy Corn.  I knew I was going to feature a squash and I thought of this Acorn Squash dish my mom use to make.  I roasted it the way she normally does and then “loaded it” with some of the mystery dish ingredients. Kinda like you would load a baked potato. The texture combination of the soft squash with the crunchy almonds and cranberries in this dish was perfect, I will definitely be making this again!

How to Make this Acorn Squash

To get started, preheat oven to 375º. Cut 2 acorn squash in half and clean out the inside. {the seeds and such till it is smooth}

Put 1 Tablespoon of butter in each half and cover top with tin foil. Place acorn squash on a baking sheet, cut side up.

Bake in oven for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until flesh is tender and you can pierce with a fork easily.

In the meantime, toast sliced almonds in a small saute pan over medium high heat for 5 minutes, or until just browned. Set aside.

Once acorn squash is finished. Using a fork gently scrap acorn squash flesh away from sides. {be careful not to pierce through the shell} Lastly, top each half with 1 Tablespoon of brown sugar, 1/4 teaspoon of ground cinnamon, 1/8 teaspoon of ground nutmeg, 1 Tablespoon of craisins, and 1 Tablespoon of toasted almonds.  Enjoy!

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