Sausage stuffed butternut squash with spinach and Parmesan cheese is a warm, hearty, cozy dinner for a chilly evening. Just a few basic ingredients needed, but you’ll get big flavor with this dish.
We had such a lovely fall weekend, and I'm feeling relaxed, recharged and ready for the week ahead! Always a good way to start on Monday...
OK, let's talk food.
Previously, I’ve shared a stuffed butternut squash recipe with quinoa, mushrooms and spinach, which is great for a vegetarian dinner option.
And today’s recipe is similar to my sausage and kale stuffed spaghetti squash.
But we’re giving it a twist.
Sausage stuffed butternut squash with spinach is full of warm, hearty flavor and is easy to make with just 4 basic ingredients.
We’ve got cooked, crumbled turkey sausage bits with wilted, tender spinach that’s stuffed into a roasted butternut squash and topped with Parmesan cheese.
Tucking into this is like a little flavor explosion! It smells great as it’s cooking, too. And it’s got some delicious fall vibes.
This makes for a really easy family dinner on a chilly night.
And if you love butternut squash as much as I do, check out this roasted butternut squash apple soup, creamy butternut squash brown rice and kale and butternut squash mac and cheese.
Man, I sure do love fall foods.
Alright, back to the recipe at hand.
Let’s get cooking.
Cause I’m getting hungry and this is gonna be so tasty!
Now, I’ve got some notes, tips and substitutions coming up below on how to make sausage and spinach stuffed butternut squash. Just tryin’ to be helpful.
If you want to jump on down to the recipe, simply scroll right on through the rest of the text. The recipe card is near the bottom of the page, above the comments section.
Ingredient Notes:
- Sausage: Turkey sausage is my go-to. I love the hot one for the extra bit of spice, but a mild turkey sausage is fine, too. You could also use pork sausage.
- Spinach: I prefer to use spinach because it wilts quickly, but you could use kale or Swiss chard for a heartier green if you prefer.
- Squash: We’re using a butternut squash in this recipe, but you could certainly try it with acorn squash, spaghetti squash or another favorite fall or winter squash.
- Parmesan cheese: This adds a savory, nutty, cheesy bite on top, but you can skip it if you need this to be dairy-free. Or you could use another cheese, like an Italian blend shredded cheese.
Lots of options to make it work for you and what you have on hand.
A quick note about servings.
I am able to super stuff my squash - even the small-ish one you see in these photos - and get all of the sausage and spinach stuffing into a single butternut squash. So you end up with two halves. You can use that to serve 3-4 people.
OR you could spread out the sausage mixture a bit more and stuff two full squashes (4 halves) if you prefer and everyone gets their own half squash.
Go with whatever works best for who you are serving.
OK, let’s tackle a frequently asked question. And the “hardest” part of this recipe.
How do you prep a butternut squash?
- First, slice off the stem and the bottom end of the squash, so that both sides are flat.
- Slice the squash in half vertically using a very sharp knife. Remove the seeds from the bottom half with a spoon and discard. (Or, save the seeds and roast them!)
- Since we are roasting then stuffing our squash, we don’t need to peel the outer skin or do any additional cutting. It’s ready to pop in the oven.
However, when you scoop out the inner part of the cooked butternut squash, to have room to be able to stuff it, you’ll be left with some extra roasted squash that we're not using in this recipe.
And since I hate wasting food, I always use this extra! And wanted to share a few ideas with you.
Ways to use extra butternut squash:
- Mix it in with the rest of the stuffing to make a heartier filling. This would also help stretch the filling to fill 2 full squashes.
- Try these butternut squash black bean quinoa burgers, which are really tasty and make a great lunch.
- Add some butter and seasonings to it and have a mashed squash side dish another day.
- Warm the leftover squash in a skillet, add some spinach to wilt in, and then make a fried egg to go on top for a savory breakfast hash of sorts.
I hope you add this sausage stuffed butternut squash to your fall or winter menu soon. It’s a great meal to cozy up to on a cold day.
Enjoy!
XO,
Kathryn
P.S. If you do make this recipe, I'd love for you to leave a comment below or tag me on Instagram. I love seeing and hearing about your creations!
Sausage Stuffed Butternut Squash with Spinach
Ingredients
- 1 medium butternut squash
- 1 lb. turkey sausage (hot or mild), casings removed
- 1 (5 oz.) bag baby spinach
- 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425.
- Carefully cut the butternut squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Bake on a foil-lined baking sheet at 425 for 40-50 minutes, until tender.
- Meanwhile, heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the turkey sausage and cook, breaking it up with a spatula as it cooks, until it is cooked through and crumbled.
- Add the spinach to the pan and stir until wilted and mixed in with the sausage, about 2-3 minutes. Set aside.
- Once the butternut squash is cooked, let cool for a few minutes and then scoop out the inside section of the butternut squash flesh, leaving a ½-inch border all the way around. Reserve extra squash for another recipe (see notes).
- Drizzle the squash with a teaspoon of olive oil and sprinkle with a little salt and pepper.
- Fill each squash half with the sausage and spinach mixture. Top with the Parmesan cheese.
- Return to the oven and continue to cook at 425 for another 10 minutes, until everything is warmed through and the cheese is melted.
- Serve hot and enjoy!
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