Baked Acorn Squash with Sausage and Rice

Today is Thursday.

"Mama said there'll be days like this, there'll be days like this, my mama said...mama said...mama said." I think that's how it goes. Having a day over here - got in a car accident (oopsie whoopsie), my kid had swimming lessons in -17 degree weather, Diet Coke can (that I only keep on hand for my mother-in-law) exploded in the garage fridge, and I didn't have time to go to Home Goods like I wanted to! WAHHH! I haven't washed my hair in like 332 days, which is the norm, but I just realized I have book club tonight so now I have to shower when I didn't even work out! What a waste! Anyways, obviously what I am getting at is that we ate carbs tonight. Yup. I'm not even sorry because I felt happier after I ate them. But I won't eat or drink any treats at book club tonight...ba ha ha ha ha ha ha ha that is a lie. Hope all you little Blogadears had a better day than I did! 

And I just realized this meal is gluten and diary-free if you just omit the Parmesan cheese. Or you can call Katie because she has dairy-free Parmesan cheese, whatever that is. I bet it's tofu. Or cauliflower. 

Baked Acorn Squash with Sausage and Rice 

Serves 4

Ingredients


2 acorn squashes I squeezed an extra half in by cutting it in half since we are five people.

1 lb sausage or chicken sausage links Wouldn't ya know, I had a combo of the two.

1 T. olive oil

1 onion

1 cup white rice This does NOT work with brown rice (oopsie whoopsie).

1 cup chicken stock 

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Salt and pepper

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

Instructions 

1) Preheat oven to 400°F. Slice acorn squashes in half through the middle (not through the stems) and scoop out the seeds. Pierce them all over with a fork and lightly salt each one. Place them skin side up in a baking pan. Pour 3/4 cup water to the pan and cover tightly with aluminum foil. Bake 30 minutes.


2) Meanwhile, cook sausages in oil over medium heat until browned and almost cooked through, about 10 minutes. 

Ignore onions. You don't see them. Mine got too dark doing it this way (oopsies again).

3) Remove sausage from pan and slice. When squash is done, remove pan from oven and, using tongs, carefully remove squash from pan (I just put mine on the inside of the foil.). Place diced onion, 1 tsp. Salt, 1/2 tsp. black pepper, sausage slices and 1 cup boiling chicken stock in the pan. Return squashes to the pan, nestling them in with the rest of the ingredients. Top squash with 1/4 tsp. nutmeg and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese. 

 

4) Bake another 40 minutes, until rice is cooked through. Stir rice around a time or two while it is baking to make sure it is fully submerged in the cooking liquids. Serve everyone a bowl filled with rice and sausage. And put 'em to bed. I'm out.

We have a squash hater in the family. Yep, it's true. There's one in every family I bet. But my little squash hater said, "Mom this is the best squash you have ever made." And I told her she was correct.


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