I’ve pretty much faceplanted onto the bandwagon full of fall squash.  Get ready for squash experiments galore!

I was browsing at Wegmans, and saw a pretty assortment of fall squash.  I impulsively plopped a kabocha squash in my cart.  I’ve never tasted kabocha before, but it looked like a cute green pumpkin, and I just had to get it.

I was excited to try kabocha, so I started cutting it before I really thought things through.  I had plans to stuff the squash, so in hind sight, I should have just cut the top off and hollowed out the middle, as if I were carving a jack-o-lantern.  In my haste, I cut it into quarters.  It still worked out, but leaving it whole would have allowed for more meaty filling, and a nicer presentation.

So anyways, I quartered the squash, scooped out the seeds, and hit it with some oil, salt, pepper, and garlic powder.

I turned the squash flesh side down, and popped the tray in a 400°F oven for about 40 minutes until the flesh was easily pierced by a fork.  By the way, that nice green skin is edible, and softens after cooking.  Be sure to scrub it well so you can get that extra fiber in you.

While the squash roasted, I got the filling ready.  I had a tray of Italian sausage, and I used kitchen shears to cut off the sausage casings.

I browned the sausage on medium heat.

I added a chopped up onion, several garlic cloves, about 4 oz of tomato basil feta crumbles, and chopped up the leftover roasted tomatoes I saved from my spaghetti squash dish from a few days ago.  If you don’t have roast tomatoes, you can chop up some fresh tomato or use canned tomato.  I did not add salt since the sausage, feta, and tomatoes were already seasoned.

I filled the squash quarters with the sausage mixture.  Then I topped them with a slice of provolone cheese.

I popped it back into the 400°F oven for about 15 minutes until the cheese melted and browned.  YEAH, easy to make, hearty fall meal.  The kabocha reminded me of sweet potato.  It had that same slightly sweet taste and starchy texture.  Mmm, I bet it would taste really good roasted or deep fried into crispy golden wedges.  Idea for next time!

Stuffed Kabocha Squash
Ingredients
– 1 kabocha squash
– 6 Italian sausages
– 1 onion
– 6 cloves of garlic
– leftover roasted tomato (or use 4-5 medium fresh tomatoes, or a can of tomatoes, drained)
– about 4 oz of tomato basil feta crumbles
– slices of provolone cheese
– salt
-pepper
– garlic powder

Directions
– Wash, cut, and de-seed the squash.  Cut it in quarters, or leave it whole, up to you.
– Drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper, and garlic powder.  Roast at 400°F for 30-40 minutes, or until the flesh is easily pierced by a fork.
– Chop the onion, garlic, and tomatoes. 
– Cut the sausage casings off and brown the sausage meat.
– Add the onion and garlic to the sausage.  After the onion becomes translucent, add the tomatoes.  Note: the longer you cook the tomatoes, the more soupy the mixture will get.  Mix the feta in after you take the mixture off the heat.
– Fill the squash with the meat mixture, top with the provolone cheese.  Put the squash back into the oven for about 15 minutes, or until the cheese melts and browns.