Ground Beef Stuffed Acorn Squash

I’ve been loving on squash, lately.. like big time! I just can’t seem to get enough of ’em. Good thing I’m not doing keto anymore, ‘cuz I would’ve kicked myself out of it for sure. Euhm, wait! Now that I think of it, I think I may have quit precisely BECAUSE squash was coming in season. Well, it was one of the reasons, anyway. Even though quite frankly, the keto lifestyle just wasn’t for me.

I honestly thought that I would give it another shot early in the new year, but I’m starting to seriously doubt it. I feel extremely liberated now that I don’t have to log every single thing that goes into my mouth just to make sure I don’t go over my carb or protein allowance and that I meet my daily fat requirements. I know that logging your food isn’t a prerequisite of keto, but for me, it was the only way to keep track, and I felt I really had to keep *very close* track to make sure I didn’t kick myself out of ketosis.

I’m real happy to be back with my strict paleo eating habits. My inspiration is finally coming back to me… I feel like cooking and want to be in the kitchen all the time (when I’m not working on the home gym project, that is), creating new tasty meals like this Ground Beef Stuffed Acorn Squash. Now I know I haven’t re-invented the wheel with this one, but still, I must say that I’ve been more than pleased with it. I’ve been enjoying it post-workout pretty much all week and frankly, I’m super sad that the stuffed gourds are already a thing of the past…

I think I need to whip me up another batch!

As always when using the oven, you want to preheat the beast… this time, you’ll want to turn that knob all the way up to 375°F.

Then, you’ll want to cut your squash in half. It’s much easier to get the job done if you start by stabbing your squash right in its center and then slide that blade down to do the actual slicing.

You then want to turn the squash around and repeat the exact same thing on the other side.

Once the squash has been cut open, you’ll want to scoop out the guts and seeds with a spoon. Don’t go using a flimsy little teaspoon for this job; you want something rather large and sturdy. One of those ice cream spoons works absolute wonders.

Next, place the squash in a broiler pan and drizzle them with a generous amount of extra-virgin olive oil, then sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Turn the squash flesh side down and bake in the oven, uncovered, for about 20 minutes, until their flesh gets soft and can easily be pierced with the tip of a sharp knife.

While the squash is cooking, melt the ghee in a skillet set over medium heat. Add the chopped onion, celery, garlic, jalapeño pepper and green bell pepper and cook until softened and fragrant, about 3 minutes.

Then throw in the ground beef, salt, pepper, garam masala, cinnamon and turmeric and cook until the meat is completely browned and cooked through, which should take about 5-6 minutes.

Once the meat is cooked through, add the tahini and water and stir until well combined.

Finally, toss the spinach leaves right in and stir delicately until it’s completely wilted and well distributed. Kill the heat and set aside.

When the squash is fully cooked, remove it from the oven and allow it to cool for a few minutes until you can safely handle it, then scoop out most of the flesh with a spoon.

Make sure you leave about half an inch of flesh on that skin.

Add the flesh that you just scooped out to the beef mixture and delicately mix it in.

Then, spoon that mixture right back into the now hollowed out acorn squash halves, sprinkle with the ground almonds and return to the oven for about 10 minutes, then set the oven to broil to give that top a beautiful golden tan.

And there you have it, a beautiful dish that doesn’t even need the presence of a side… except for maybe a little bit of greenery! A few slices of cucumber, a handful of sprouts and you’ve got yourself the perfect breakfast, or post-work out meal, or lunch, or dinner…

Oh, a fork would be a good idea. Hold on, I’ll get one for ya…

Print Recipe Rate this Recipe

4.75 from 16 votes

Ground Beef Stuffed Acorn Squash

Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 2 medium acorn squash
• 1 tbsp ghee, or make your own
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 1 large jalapeño pepper, seeded and finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 celery rib, chopped
• 750 g 1.65lb grass-fed ground beef
• 1 tsp Himalayan salt
• 1 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 1/2 tsp ground Ceylon cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
• 1/4 cup tahini paste
• 1/4 cup water
• 3 cups baby spinach leaves
• 2 tbsp sliced blanched almonds, finely ground

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 375F
• Cut the squash in half and scoop out the guts and seeds with a spoon; place them in a broiler pan and drizzle with a generous amount of extra-virgin olive oil, then sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper.
• Turn the squash flesh side down and bake in the oven, uncovered, for about 20 minutes, until softened and the flesh can easily be pierced with the tip of a sharp knife.
• While the squash is baking, melt the ghee in a skillet set over medium heat. Add the chopped onion, garlic, jalapeño pepper, celery and green bell pepper and cook until softened and fragrant, about 3 minutes.
• Throw in the ground beef, salt, pepper, garam masala, cinnamon and turmeric and cook until the meat is completely browned and cooked through, about 5-6 minutes.
• Add tahini and water and stir until well combined. Finally, toss the spinach leaves right in and stir delicately until it’s completely wilted and well distributed. Kill the heat and set aside.
• When the squash is fully cooked, remove it from the oven and allow it to cool for a few minutes until you can safely handle it, then scoop out most of the flesh with a spoon. You’ll want to leave about half an inch of flesh over the skin.
• Add the flesh that you just scooped out to the beef mixture and delicately mix it in.
• Spoon that mixture right back into the acorn squash halves, sprinkle with the ground almonds and return to the oven for about 10 minutes, then set the oven to broil to finish browning the top.
• Serve.
  

Author: Sonia! The Healthy Foodie

If you’ve tried this recipe, please take a minute to rate the recipe and let me know how things went for you in the comments below. It’s always such a pleasure to hear from you!

You can also FOLLOW ME on PINTEREST, FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM and TWITTER for more delicious, healthy recipes!