LH Supper Club: Stuffed Acorn Squash

Having friends over for dinner can be oh so stressful.  It is a difficult task to find a balance between impressing your friends with a delicious meal and making it easy on the prep cook.  In our new series, we will be offering easy, seasonal approaches to dishes that are perfect for girl’s night or a casual dinner for two.  We like food that is simple to prepare, healthy when it can be, and always delicious.  With the launch of LH Supper Club, our first recipe is certain to leave your guests full, happy, and just a little bit jealous.

What you’ll need:

-1 acorn squash

-1 quart shredded kale

-1 pear, peeled and diced

-1/2 cup goat cheese

-1/2 cup almond slivers

-1 lemon

Preheat the oven to 350°F.  With a sturdy knife, cut your acorn squash in half and scrape out the seeds.  Once your oven is hot, drizzle a little olive oil over the flesh of the squash and season with S&P.  Place the squash flesh-side down on a baking sheet and into the oven it goes, checking after thirty minutes.  Once the flesh is tender under your touch, but not mushy, remove from the oven to cool.

Place a sauté pan on medium heat and add a tablespoon of olive oil.  Add your kale and pear and stir.  The goal here is to only lightly wilt the kale, so it shouldn’t be in the pan longer than a minute or two.  With a fine grater or microplane, zest the lemon into the kale and squeeze in its juice.  Season to taste.

With your saute done and your squash cool you can now finish up.  Stuff the squash with the sautéed kale and pear, sprinkling almonds and pinches of goat cheese here and there.  To finish, simply pop the squash back in the oven until hot and the goat cheese is gooey and delicious.  These can be made ahead of time to avoid the hassle of cooking for a live audience.  If you have some bread crumbs around, toast them in butter or in an oven until golden brown and top it all off. 

This is the sort of dish that is healthy, delicious, and will always impress.  The prep and clean up is minimal, but your guests will never know.  Get your closest friends on the phone and tell them to bring over some wine, dinner is on us.