After our stuffed squash recipe from a few weeks ago which you can find here > Sunday Roast Stuffed Squash < I instantly knew I had to experiment and make another one but with a different stuffing mixture AND I wanted to add in cheese to see how it would work. And my goodness, we were in a food coma after this as it was so damn good.
The stuffing in this recipe makes plenty for leftovers for another day too so that is lunch sorted as well.
Some recommended items from our kitchen for this dish…
- Double sided dry and liquid measuring spoons for times when you need to measure both liquid and dry ingredients.
- A decent set of knives for chopping, with a knife sharpener which is always handy.
- Large roasting tin.
- A decent set of knives for chopping, with a knife sharpener which is always handy.
- A big time saver for chopping veg with a veg chopper, from onions to carrots this is a god send to chop quickly.
- Garlic crusher, we have had this one for a good while, easy to clean and can crush multiple cloves at once saving time.
- Non stick saucepans.
**NOTE: just a quick note about the seasoning we use in this dish, we have used a spice kit available from SpiceNTice which have all the spices you need all included in one kit so we don’t need to rummage through the spice cupboard for lots of different ones. Their spice kits and rubs are all Slimming Club friendly (Slimming World, Weight Watchers, Calorie counting etc). For 10% off your order you can use our code HICKMAN10 at the checkout.
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Serves 2 as a main dish or 4 as a side dish
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 large butternut squash
For the stuffing:
- 225g white and wild rice mix
- 1 medium courgette, sliced and then each slice in quarters
- 1 red bell pepper, deseeded and roughly chopped
- 300g cherry tomatoes
- 1 large onion, finely diced
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- 1 stick celery, finely diced
- 300g passata
- 1 tablespoon tomato puree
- 600ml vegetable stock
- 1 tablespoon SpiceNTice chimichuri rub (** See note above about this rub)
- 80g mature light cheddar, sliced thinly or grated
METHOD:
- Preheat the oven to 180°C fan.
- Cut the butternut squash in half length-ways and scoop out the seeds.
- Spray a little frylight or a little oil (we prefer to use oil but do what you prefer) and place the butternut squash flesh side down onto a baking tray and roast for 60 – 75 minutes, turning the squash over half way through cooking. NOTE: Don’t over bake as we will be cooking it further in the next few steps, you want it to be soft enough to scoop out the flesh but not too soft that its mushy and collapsing.
- Once baked remove from the oven and leave it to cool so you can handle it.
- Meanwhile while the squash is cooking prepare the stuffing.
- Add the cherry tomatoes, pepper and courgette to a baking tray, sprinkle over a little of the chimichuri rub and roast until golden and the tomatoes start to split.
- In a pan saute the onion, celery and garlic until beginning to brown.
- Add the rice, puree, passata, rest of the chimichuri rub and stock and bring to the boil.
- Turn down to a simmer and cover with a lid and continue to simmer for 20 – 30 minutes or until the rice is fully cooked and the stock absorbed (check your packet of rice instructions as you may need to cook for a little longer and may need a little more water).
- When the butternut is cool enough to handle score all the way around about half an inch away from the edge and scoop out the flesh, being careful not to cut through the skin, dice the flesh into small pieces and stir into the stuffing mixture along with the roasted courgette, pepper and cherry tomatoes. Season to taste.
- Now to stuff the squash. Spoon the stuffing into both sides of the squash and pack it in nice and tight, cram as much as you can in.
- Put the cheese on one half and place the halves together and tie some kitchen string to tie together in 3 – 4 places.
- Place on a roasting tray and roast for 20 – 25 minutes or until piping hot all the way through.
- Slice and serve immediately either as a main dish or as a side.
NOTES:
- The leftover rice can be enjoyed for lunches the next day. Simply store in an airtight container and put in the fridge when cool enough. Enjoy heated up again or its delicious cold.
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