Stuffed Butternut Squash with Curried Couscous Salad
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Stuffed Butternut Squash halves with a simple curried couscous salad. The couscous salad is loaded with sweet cranberries, crunchy pecans, and tons of herbs. This is perfect to serve as a side or even as a main course!
Stuffed butternut squash!
Hey, friends! We’re looking at butternut squash halves that have been stuffed with a sweet and spicy curried pearl couscous and basically, all the FALL THINGS.
Keep this little, stuffed butternut squash recipe filed away under your main course or side salad folders because it’s good to serve as either. And if you’re one of those super prepared people that are already putting together your Thanksgiving spread, get this on the menu because how gorgeous are these butternut squash boats going to look?
So festive ?
Come every October my internal butternut squash alarm clock goes off and all of a sudden, I’m eagerly kissing my zucchini squash farewell and moving onto their fall counterparts. In the past, I’ve shared by curried butternut squash soup. You guys have shown it soo much love that I wanted to do another mash-up of the same flavors, this time in salad form.
Things that I love about this recipe begin with: it’s entirely meatless so EVERYONE can enjoy it. But also because it’s incredibly versatile. You can quickly grab a rotisserie chicken on the way home and serve it on the side or chop it right up and toss it in with the curried couscous salad for those meat-lovers in your life. I feel you; I wouldn’t be able to get away serving these stuffed butternut boats without a little extra protein on the side for hubsy.
It’s also a recipe that lets you ‘make it your own’, As in, if you’ve got golden raisins or currants that need to be used, by all means, toss them in. Wanna make it more herby? Go right ahead, load it up. Got regular cooked couscous that you need to use up? Do yo thang, girl. Recipes like this stuffed butternut squash are the perfect way to CLEAN your fridge/pantry. Also, while we’re on the topic: come back and share how you made this recipe your own.
I love hearing that kind of stuff!
So I need to ask you guys something. How are you guys feeling about fall food right now? I mean, are you already drowning in pumpkin-spice-everything? Would you like to see more squash related recipes on the blog? I’ve got another butternut squash soup that I’m itching to make for us, but I won’t introduce it this year if you’re kinda on squash overload already.
Moving along. Let’s jump into this stuffed butternut squash recipe. It starts with roasting your squash. A light drizzle of olive oil, a pinch of salt and pepper and half a teaspoon of brown sugar on every half. The brown sugar does wonders when you’re roasting squash. Just that tiny amount brings out so much sweetness from the squash, and it’s perfect to balance out that spicy curry flavor and that tart cranberries. While your squash is roasting, cook up the couscous or do it over the weekend if you want this meal to be weeknight-friendly. You can scoop out some of that butternut squash before loading up the boats if you’re serving this as a main course and pop that cooked up squash into a little container to use for later. Of course, you can also just leave that squash as is and make six boats instead of four.
Then, it’s as simple as tossing the herbs, cranberries, pecans, and scallions in with the couscous. The curry dressing is a breeze to make. It’s just a little olive oil, a few teaspoons of mild curry powder, salt, pepper, and a small drizzle of honey. Of course, honey can be replaced with maple syrup or even omitted if you’re using raisins.
If Fall had an official food, it would be this stuffed butternut squash. It’s mildly spicy, tart, sweet, herbaceous, and just beautiful to look at.
Finally, my wish for you is to put this on the menu, make it this week, this month, for any major holiday. Just make this and share it with someone else who loves butternut squash and all things jewel-toned.
Pretty sure that’s most of us.
Stuffed Butternut Squash with Curried Couscous Salad
Stuffed Butternut Squash halves with a simple curried couscous salad. The couscous salad is loaded with sweet cranberries, crunchy pecans, and tons of herbs. This is perfect to serve as a side or even as a main course!
Ingredients
Butternut boats:
- 2-3 small butternut squashes
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 2-3 teaspoons brown sugar
- salt and pepper
Curried couscous:
- 1 cup pearl (israeli) couscous
- 4 teaspoons mild curry powder
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon honey or maple syrup
- 1/4 cup chopped scallions
- 1/3 cup chopped parsley
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans
- 1/3 cup dried cranberries
Instructions
- butternut squash: Position a rack near the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 425ºF. Halve the squashes, and remove the seeds. Arrange the butternut squash on a baking sheet, cut side facing up and drizzle them with the oil. Sprinkle each with a pinch of salt and pepper and 1/2 teaspoon of brown sugar. Roast the squash for 48-52 minutes or until fork tender. Remove from the oven and let cool for several minutes before stuffing.
- curried couscous: While the butternut squash is roasting cook the couscous according to package directions. Place the couscous in a bowl to cool to room temperature. In a small bowl or mason jar, combine the olive oil, honey, curry powder, a pinch of salt, and pepper whisk or shake to combine. Drizzle the dressing over the couscous and stir to combine. Add the scallions, parsley, pecans, and cranberries. Taste and adjust seasonings or curry powder to taste.
- assemble: Scoop out some of the squash if you find its too much per serving. Reserved squash can be used for other meals. Top butternut boats with prepared couscous salad. I find these taste best served at room temperature.
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