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Instead of a 3-hour mega-marathon with 47 dirty pans and a dish towel that caught fire, you can beautifully pull off this vegan stuffed acorn squash recipe, even if you suck at cooking. You roast the squash, fill it with quinoa, chestnuts, and herbs, and suddenly you've got something that holds its own as a Thanksgiving entrée, plus it's gluten-free, 100% meatless and hyper-flavorful too.
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You are going to blush when you see how good this stuffed squash makes your holiday table look. You're roasting these beauties so they come out tender but not even a little mushy, then packing them with quinoa, chestnuts, herbs, and cranberries for a stuffing that actually tastes like it belongs front and center at your feast. If anyone tells you they don't like squash, serve them this and wait for the silence and eyebrows going up as they finish the whole dang thing.
For a plant-forward Sunday dinner, I like to set mine down next to roasted cauliflower steaks, maple-balsamic roasted Brussels sprouts and carrots, and my vegan green bean casserole. At that point, the turkey can clock out early and go back to living peacefully with its Turkey fam in the woods.
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🥰 Why you'll adore this Stuffed Acorn Squash recipe
✊ Vegan AF & GF: Like all of my vegan Thanksgiving recipes, this acorn squash vegan recipe ditches the cute animals and still serves up a main that feels classic, not compromised. And what's that? You hate gluten with all of your heart and soul? Well, this is one of the standout gluten-free vegan recipes that your whole crew will be psyched about.
🛒 No Scavenger Hunt Ingredients: Every ingredient is easy to grab at a regular grocery store, especially in fall when acorn squash, chestnuts, and cranberries basically throw themselves at you off the shelves as you walk down the aisle.
✅ Tested and Approved Worldwide: Just like all my vegan recipes, this one was tweaked to perfection with feedback from a team of hundreds of recipe testers!
🥧 Show Them Vegan Thanksgiving Can Be Better
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🎃️ Stuffed Acorn Squash Ingredients
The squash
Acorn squash is that cute little winter squash with ridged green skin and sweet orange flesh that roasts up tender and a touch caramelized, basically an edible bowl begging for the right stuffing.
Speaking of which, if you hate quinoa as much as my wife does, once baked, you can always fill the squash with my vegan cornbread stuffing instead.
You can totally swap in kabocha, or butternut squash if you can't find acorn squash. If your butternut shows up like a big ol' honker and you lop off the skinny top (because it's just too much squash for you to even handle), don't toss it (duh). Use the trimmed portions to make my vegan butternut squash soup, butternut squash salad, or vegan butternut squash mac n cheese. Seriously, no waste, no baste, all taste.
The Seasonings
This trio is the flavor crew: thyme, poultry seasoning (technically a mix of several herbs), and nooch throw down a great backbone of flavor here.
Quinoa
If you're one of those folks who swears they can't stand quinoa (like my mean, mean wife Joey), buckwheat's a solid complete protein swap. It's what I use for vegan blintzes and kasha varnishkes. Rice, millet, or couscous can be used in the filling too if that's what you've got on hand.
Vegetable stock
Veg stock is what carries the savory load and cooks the quinoa evenly, but make sure you're using unsalted stock so you can keep the seasoning in check. If you can't track that down, just cut back a bit on the tamari later in the recipe. Worst case, hot water with a spoonful of miso or some herbs will do the job.
Roasted chestnuts
Let's be real, I'm not standing around peeling them like some Dickensian street vendor. Bah.
Like the lazy bum I am, I grab the bagged pre-roasted, shelled ones and toss them into everything from vegan stuffing to roasted butternut squash crostini like it's no big deal. Toasted walnuts or pecans can be subbed in and the filling is pretty bangin' with them too.
*See the recipe card at the bottom of the page for exact quantities, nutritional info, and detailed cooking directions.
🤯Variations
Pearl Couscous Stuffed Acorn Squash
Rub the squash down with my harissa paste before roasting so it comes out spicy and toasty. You can even shortcut the filling with my pearl couscous salad. Just leave out cucumbers or anything else that turns weird once it hits the oven. Finish it off with love and a drizzle of tarator sauce or zhoug sauce and boom, squash just levelled the heck up, nah' mean?
Wild Rice and Hazelnut Stuffed Acorn Squash
Wild rice brings the chew, hazelnuts bring the crunch, and you bring the lie that it was "a ton of work." Spoiler: it wasn't.
Vegan bacon and egg stuffed acorn squash for breakfast
Yup, breakfast squash is officially a thing, you can't tell me otherwise. Roast your squash, pile in my vegan scrambled eggs, and toss on a handful of chopped bacon (seitan bacon, tofu bacon, tempeh bacon, or carrot bacon), take your pick. Then drizzle on some vegan hollandaise, and tell me you have seen a more gorgeous brekky…
50 stunning holiday classics designed to win over even the most anti-vegan guests.
📖 How to make Vegan Stuffed Acorn Squash
If you're already circling the kitchen like a hungry raccoon, the recipe card's waiting at the bottom. If you want the how and the why, keep reading and enjoy the photos!
Step One
Squashpit:
Heat your oven to 400°F (200°C) and slide a sheet of parchment onto a baking tray.
Slice the squash top to bottom, scoop out the seeds.
Step Two
Curses, Oiled Again!
Brush the cut sides with olive oil, lay them cut side down on the tray, and roast for 40 minutes at 400°F (200°C) until the flesh gives easily to a fork and the squash halves have excreted some caramelized juices onto the parchment. Pull them out and set aside.
Step Three
You Used To Call Me On My Celery:
While the squash bakes, warm olive oil in a skillet over medium heat, toss in onion and celery, and cook for 6 minutes over medium heat until softened and fragrant.
Step Four
Garls In Charge:
Add garlic, thyme, and poultry seasoning, and stir for 2 minutes over medium heat until the kitchen starts smelling holiday-ready.
Step Five
Quinona Ryder:
Stir in nutritional yeast, quinoa, and unsalted stock, bring the mix to a boil, then cover and lower the heat to a simmer for 15-16 minutes over low heat until the quinoa is fully cooked.
Step Six
Last Cran Standing
Uncover the pan and stir through tamari, orange zest, chestnuts, cranberries, sage, and parsley, then take it off the heat.
Step Seven
License to Fill:
Flip the squash halves cut side up, spoon the filling evenly, and slide them back in for 10 minutes at 400°F (200°C) until the filling is lightly crisped on top.
Step Eight
Sage Against the Machine:
Pull the tray from the oven, let them rest 5 minutes, and top with parsley or sage before serving.
💡Serving Ideas
Serve this stuffed roasted acorn squash as the centerpiece to a proper vegan Thanksgiving or Christmas spread.
I like to roll out a soup first, roasted carrot lentil soup, roasted mushroom soup or Thai pumpkin curry, so folks have something to enjoy while I am in the kitchen putting finishing touches on my mildly creepy tofu turkey.
For the main course, alongside this squash recipe, you might want to rock out a vegan shepherd's pie, vegan ham, or mushroom bourguignon.
YOU KNOW the sides have to make their entrance too. Vegan sweet potato casserole, harissa roasted carrots, roasted parsnips, and hasselback potatoes with garlic and sage all up in them. Perhaps some maple bourbon cranberry sauce? Uh, most def.
👉Top tips
- Check the squash, don't guess: A quick fork test tells you if it's tender enough. Undercooked stays tough and dry, overcooked turns mushy and sloppy looking.
- Let it rest before serving: A short cool-down helps the filling firm up so your portions stay neat instead of falling apart. And this also makes sure no one burns their whole face off, and you end up with the most gruesome horror movie Xmas since Terrifier came out…
- Don't Overstuff the Squash: Fill 'em right a little bit above the rim, but not like you're practicing for a county fair pie-eating contest. That way the servings look clean, stay manageable, and nobody's chasing too much runaway filling across the plate.
🤷♀️ Recipe FAQs
The flesh of the squash should yield easily to a fork when roasted; that means it's tender enough without being mushy.
Yes, the skin becomes tender when roasted; just make sure to wash it thoroughly and roast until it gives a little.
Nope. I think this just risks getting too messy on you between roasting, freezing, thawing and re-roasting, and it will probably dry out quite a lot along the way too.
🥶 Refrigerating
Place cooled stuffed squash halves in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days. This keeps the filling fresh and the squash tender without drying out.
🔥 Stovetop Reheating
Slice the stuffed squash into halves or quarters and place in a covered skillet over medium-low heat. Add a splash of vegetable stock and continue cooking for about ten minutes until heated through.
⚡️ Oven Reheating
Set the oven to 350°F (175°C), place the squash halves on a baking sheet, and cover loosely with foil. Warm them for 15-20 minutes until the centers are hot and cooked all the way through.
🍁You'll love these vegan Thanksgiving recipes too:
Unlock a discounted bundle of classes that walk you through vegan Thanksgiving menus with detailed video instruction from Chef Adam Sobel.
Vegan Stuffed Acorn Squash Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 medium acorn squash
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
The Filling:
- 4 teaspoons olive oil
- 1 cup onion diced
- 1 cup celery diced
- 2 teaspoons garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon thyme
- 1 ½ teaspoons poultry seasoning
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- ⅔ cup quinoa
- 1 ⅓ cups unsalted vegetable stock or water
- 1 tablespoon tamari
- 2 teaspoons orange zest
- 1 cup roasted chestnuts chopped
- ½ cup dried cranberries
- ¼ cup sage leaves chopped
- ½ cup parsley leaves chopped
Optional Garnishes:
- Fresh parsley leaves
- Fresh sage leaves
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Cut each squash in half from stem to tip and scoop out the seeds.
- Brush the cut sides with olive oil and place the halves cut side down on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 40 minutes, until the flesh is tender when pierced with a fork. Remove from the oven and set aside.
- While the squash is baking, warm olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. After 90 seconds when the oil is hot, add the onion and celery. Cook for 6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened.
- Add the garlic, thyme, and poultry seasoning and cook for 2 minutes, stirring often.
- Stir in the nutritional yeast, quinoa, and vegetable stock. Bring to a boil, then reduce to low heat, cover, and cook for 15 minutes.
- Uncover the skillet and stir in tamari, orange zest, chestnuts, cranberries, sage, and parsley. Remove from the heat.
- Turn the squash halves cut side up and divide the filling evenly among them. Return the stuffed squash to the oven and bake at 400°F (200°C) for 10 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes before serving. Garnish with fresh parsley or sage leaves.
Notes
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Marj says
Super flavorful and feels like something you’d get at a fancy vegan resto.