I love Middle Eastern food. Give me falafels and hummus and you will see my smile. Kebabs bring me joy. Fresh, hot pita is a true delight. And this recipe for stuffed roasted butternut squash is divine. The filling is chock full of your choice of ground meat (lamb, beef, or chicken) blended with red onion and garlic, a whole host of earthy, aromatic spices, lemon juice, sun dried tomato paste, pomegranate molasses. That all gets baked to perfection and then drizzled with a yogurt sauce, more pomegranate molasses, and toasted nuts. I'm grinning just recalling it!
Now, most of these ingredients are pretty accessible, but if you don't have sun dried tomato paste, you can use the regular version available in nearly every grocery store. If you don't have pomegranate molasses, you can mix equal parts honey and lemon juice and use that instead. It won't be a perfect substitute, but will hit the right balance of tangy and sweet that pomegranate molasses brings to a dish.
This is a great all in one meal and a nice beverage alongside is really all that's needed. I happened to have some beet hummus on hand that I worked onto my plate, mostly because I thought it was pretty and it did go nicely with forkfuls of tender squash and seasoned ground lamb. If you are a big fan of the yogurt sauce, you can have more of it on the table for serving too. Enjoy!
Turkish Stuffed Squash
- 1 medium or 2 small butternut squash
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small red onion, finely chopped
- 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
- ½ tablespoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground allspice
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon sun dried tomato paste
- 8 oz. lean ground lamb, beef, or chicken
- 1 tablespoon pomegranate molasses
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
- ½ cup Greek yogurt
- 1 teaspoon pomegranate molasses
- ½ cup toasted walnuts or pine nuts
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Cut the butternut squash lengthways in half. Use a spoon to scoop out the seeds and discard. Brush the squash with half of the olive oil. Place, cut-side down, on a baking tray. Bake for 30 minutes or until just tender. Scoop out the flesh, leaving a thin border. Finely chop the flesh; set aside.
Meanwhile, heat the remaining olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the onion, stirring, for 2 minutes or until softened. Add the garlic, cumin, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, lemon juice and sun dried tomato paste. Cook, stirring, for 1-2 minutes. Add the ground meat. Cook, breaking up with a wooden spoon, for 4 minutes or until browned. Add the pomegranate molasses. Cook, stirring, for 2-3 minutes.
Add the chopped squash flesh. Cook, stirring, for 2-3 minutes. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Turn off the heat and stir in the chopped cilantro. Divide the mixture between the halves of the butternut squash.
Cover the baking tray with the stuffed squash on it with foil. Bake for 20 minutes or until the squash is tender. Remove the foil and cook for a further 5 minutes or until lightly browned.
Combine the yogurt and 1 teaspoon of pomegranate molasses in a bowl. Season. Drizzle the stuffed squash with the yogurt mixture and the toasted nuts. If desired, drizzle with additional pomegranate molasses if you want a little more tang in the dish.
- Yields: 4 servings
- Preparation Time: 90 minutes