The credit for this recipe goes all to Suz. She’s been working so hard on her Autoimmunity Protocol (AIP) and a big struggle she’s had in the past is making meals that have variety. This Sausage Stuffing Stuffed Squash is no exception. I really couldn’t be more proud of her. As of this posting she’s just over 3 weeks in and if she keeps coming up with recipes like this, I don’t see her slowing down any time soon.
We’ve wanted to make a couple of new Fall/Thanksgiving inspired recipes lately and while we have had a couple of ideas here and there, this one just hit Suz kinda out of nowhere. She said it all started while she was trying to think of different starches that are allowed on AIP (she told me she has sweet potatoes almost everyday just to stay sane). It being right in the middle of Winter Squash season, she was hit all at once with this idea.
Suz is always a fan of Thanksgiving stuffing so she decided to give it an AIP twist while using a different form of starch. For the recipe testing phase Suz used ground pork since she has access to some amazing pastured pork down in Alabama. I would have used ground pork myself, but I had just used the last of my Cook Pigs Ranch stash a couple weeks ago. I wasn’t able to find a good quality source for ground pork up here in Vancouver but I DID have access so some beautiful wild boar so I used that and it was so good.
If you’re looking for a simple dish to make that is sure to impress everyone, give this a shot. It will definitely turn some heads and will turn you into a culinary hero amongst your friends and family.
- 2 acorn squashes, halved and seeded
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
- 1lb ground wild boar or pastured pork
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp onion powder
- 2 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tbs fresh thyme, chopped*
- 1 tbs fresh rosemary, chopped*
- 1 tbs fresh sage, chopped*
- 2 tbs lard, tallow, duck fat or fat of choice
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
- 1 cup mushrooms, sliced
- 1 large Granny Smith apple, seeded and chopped (skin intact)
- 1 cup celery, chopped
- 1 8-oz can sliced water chestnuts, drained and chopped
- 2 tbs flat leaf parsley, chopped
- juice of 1 half lemon
- Preheat oven 400° F.
- Place a wire rack into a baking sheet. Add water or bone broth to the pan (this will help it cook via steam).
- Put olive oil on each half, and season with salt & pepper.
- Place squash halves cut side down on the wire rack/pan and bake for 30 minutes.
- In a separate bowl, combine wild boar/pork and spices (garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper, thyme, rosemary and sage), mix well and set aside.
- While the squash is baking, heat lard (or fat of choice) large cast iron skillet over medium heat.
- Add onion, mushrooms, apple, celery, water chestnuts and parsley.
- Stir occasionally and add more fat to the pan as needed.
- Cook about 10 minutes or until cooked through.
- After 10 minutes, add the pork mixture to the skillet.
- Cook for another 10 minutes, breaking up the pork and cooking until pork is no longer pink.
- When the squash is done, remove from oven and flip over to expose the cut side. Be sure to keep the oven heated to 400 F°.
- Allow squash to cool slightly.
- Once sausage mixture is cooked together and squash slightly cooled, spoon the mixture into the squash, filling the middle with a nice mound of stuffing. You might have extra filling leftover - that’s ok!
- Return to the oven and cook for 10-15 minutes or until slightly browned.
- Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes.
- Finish with a squeeze of lemon and serve!
**Make sure you save the squash seeds so you can make roast them in duck fat and herbs for an awesome snack
Also, don’t forget that November is Epilepsy Awareness Month so don’t forget to check out the posts we have regarding that.
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