This lightly baked acorn squash with butter and brown sugar is perfect for fall. Halve the squash, scoop out the inside and bake with a little butter, brown sugar and maple syrup.
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How to cook acorn squash
Always a favorite at our Thanksgiving table is baked acorn squash. They are so easy! The hardest part is cutting the squash in half – you’ll need a sharp, steady knife and a strong, steady hand.
But then all you have to do is scoop out the seeds, score the insides, drizzle with butter and brown sugar or maple syrup, and bake. To eat, you can cut them into wedges or cut them in half and scoop out the flesh with a spoon.
How to buy acorn squash
Acorn squash are winter squashes. When shopping, choose pumpkins that are heavy to the touch and have flawless and mold-free skin. They should also not have any soft spots, but rather be quite firm. They should be dark green and may have a yellow or orange spot where they lay on the ground before picking.
Like other winter squashes, the whole acorn squash stores very well during the cold months, simply store in a cool, dry place; They last a month or more.
They’re a great source of iron, vitamin A (from all that beta-carotene-packed orange flesh!), vitamin C, and riboflavin.
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How to cut acorn squash
Like most winter squashes, acorn squashes are dense and can be difficult to cut. Here are some helpful tips:
- Stabilize Pumpkin: Knife Skill 101, right? Make sure what you are cutting is stable on the table. If the stem is short, the most stable position for the squash is likely to be supporting it stem end down. If the stem is too long and you can’t easily remove it, lay the squash on its side and roll it until you find the most stable position for it.
- Use a sharp, heavy chef’s knife: A sharp knife will really help get through the squash, a dull one can slip as you cut. A heavy chef’s knife has the weight and length you need to cut through the squash.
- rubber mallet: Do you have a rubber mallet? Tapping the knife with one can help if it gets stuck.
- Microwave: If you have a microwave, zap the squash (each) for a minute before slicing. This will soften the skin and flesh just enough to make it easier to cut through.
Video: Baking Acorn Squash
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How to make baked acorn squash
Make tips for acorn squash
Bake the full pumpkin recipe up to 2 days in advance. Wrap each piece individually in foil and store in the refrigerator. Reheat in foil at 400°F until just heated through. The foil will help the squash retain its moisture as it reheats.
How to serve acorn squash
Serve acorn squash as a side dish with chicken, turkey, pork or beef. Or for a filling entree, omit the brown sugar and maple syrup and fill the hollowed out portion with a filling to make it a more filling entree. Attempt:
- Vegetarian chili
- Chili con carne
- Cooked beans, corn, chopped onions and garlic
- Cooked Brown Rice
- Boiled sausage crumbled
This baked acorn squash is also a healthy dessert because of its gentle sweetness.
Try this method with other winter squash
Other winter squash would also work with this method. Try these pumpkin varieties baked the same way (you may need to quarter large pumpkins).
- butternut
- buttercup
- Sweet dumpling
- kabocha
- pumpkin
More Favorite Pumpkin Recipes
- Stuffed Acorn Squash with Brown Rice and Mushrooms
- Butternut squash with walnuts and vanilla
- Roasted Kabocha Pumpkin Soup
- Stuffed delicata squash with quinoa and mushrooms
- Roasted winter squash with cilantro chimichurri
From the editors of Simply Recipes
Baked Acorn Squash with Butter and Brown Sugar
ingredients
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1 Acorn to squeeze
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1 tablespoon butter
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2 tablespoon Brown sugar
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2 teaspoon maple syrup
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hyphen kosher Salt
method
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Preheat the oven:
Preheat oven to 400°F.
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Prepare pumpkin:
If you have a microwave, heat the squash for a minute at a time to make it easier to slice. Then stabilize the squash on a cutting board as best you can, stem end down if the stem is short enough, otherwise sideways. Using a sharp, sturdy chef’s knife, carefully cut the acorn squash in half from tip to stem. If the squash is on its side, it can rock back and forth, so be careful when you cut it.
Use a sturdy metal spoon to scrape out the seeds and fibrous bits in each squash half until the inside is smooth.
Take a sharp paring knife and score the insides of the acorn squash halves in a crosshatch pattern, making cuts about half an inch deep.
Place the squash halves cut-side up in a roasting pan. Pour 1/4 inch of water over the bottom of the pan to keep the squash from burning or drying out in the oven.
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Add butter, salt, brown sugar and maple syrup:
Rub 1/2 tablespoon butter into the inside of each half. Sprinkle with a little salt if using unsalted butter.
Crumble 1 tablespoon brown sugar into the center of each half and drizzle with 1 teaspoon maple syrup.
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Bake:
Bake at 400°F until the tops of the squash halves are nicely browned and the squash flesh is very tender and cooked through, about 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes.
It’s hard to overcook squash, it only gets better with more caramelization. Don’t undercook it.
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Remove from the oven, cool slightly and serve:
When done, remove the squash halves from the oven. Spoon any buttered sugar sauce that hasn’t yet been picked up by the squash over the exposed areas. Allow to cool slightly before serving.
| nutritional information (per serving) | |
|---|---|
| 94 | calories |
| 3g | Fat |
| 17g | carbohydrates |
| 1g | protein |
