Two squash recipes in a row! Fall is here and instead of lamenting I’ve decided to embrace everything I love about fall. Crisp mornings, elaborate Halloween decorations in every New York City building, pumpkin picking, Edgar Allen Poe stories, high boots, over-sized sweaters and warm spiced baking with things like these squashes. No, you won’t find me looking forlornly facing south and dreaming of warmer places where everything swells with summer’s opulence. As the darker months bring their chill, I’ll look instead to the leaves showing their true colors, resplendent after months of hiding behind their chlorophyll. I’ll look to the sky, welcoming Orion back from his trip to the southern hemisphere, returning to make way for the birds’ migration. And I looked again to Ottolenghi and Tamimi’s Jerusalem to find the perfect recipe.
I ultimately ended up using their idea for the chermoula eggplant with yogurt and bulgar, which I’ve adapted before for my Spiced Stuffed Eggplant. This dish comes together quite quickly. Flavor builds upon texture as the vegetable, dairy and proteins comprise a delicate framework for a singular, spectacular dish. The deep cup of the acorn squash serves as a perfect platform for the chermoula spice paste, the North African flavor base for the rest of the meal. The sweet currants and salty, toasted almonds play as a counterpoint to the finely minced and flavored turkey, which is then tempered by a cool drizzle of yogurt, fragrant mint leaves, a splash of olive oil and a hint of cilantro.
Ingredients:
- 4 cloves garlic, crushed
- 4 tsp ground cumin
- 4 tsp ground coriander
- 2 tsp chili flakes
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- 4 tbsp lemon juice
- 2/3 cup olive oil
- 4 medium acorn squash
- 1 lb lean ground turkey
- 1 egg
- 1/3 cup breadcrumbs or panko
- 1 cup quinoa
- 2/3 cup boiling water
- 1/3 cup dried currants
- 3 1/2 tablespoons warm water
- 1 handful cilantro
- 1/3 oz mint chopped
- 1/3 cup sliced toasted almonds
- 8 scallions, chopped
- 1 cup greek yogurt
- salt
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400F.
To make the chermoula-like spice, mix in a small bowl the 1/2 of the garlic, cumin, coriander, chile, smoked paprika, lemon juice, 2/3 of the olive oil and 1/2 tsp salt.
Cut the squash in half lengthwise. Spoon most of the paste over each half, spreading it over the squash it on a baking sheet cut side up.
Mix the rest of the paste into a bowl with the ground turkey. Add the rest of the garlic, some more cumin, lemon, salt, coriander, and some pepper to taste. Add the breadcrumbs and an egg. Scoop a handful of the meat into the squash, leaving a little room to add the quinoa later. Insert into the oven for 45 minutes.
Meanwhile in a pan. another pan, boil the water and add the quinoa. As the quinoa boils, you will start to see a white ring outside the grains. When you see most of them have sprouted, add the dried currants, almonds (which you can toast in a pan if you’d like), herbs, scallions, lemon juice and salt. Set aside.
When the stuffed squash is ready, pull it from the oven and top with the quinoa wherever there is room in the sqush or eat on the side. Spoon a few dollops of yogurt on each half, sprinkle with cilantro/scallions/mint/extra currants and a drizzle of olive oil.
Adapted from the Chermoula eggplant with bulgar & yogurt recipe from Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamim’s Jerulsalem cookbook.
Good looking and delicious.
Thank you! Just glad to be back in the kitchen and out of the office.
Love it. Acorn squash is one of my absolute favorite fall ingredients. I usually bake it simply with cheddar cheese and Espelette pepper, or with maple syrup and Chinese five spice. But this dish is something else entirely. Beautiful photos. I shall have to try it.
Thanks, David. Yours sounds absolutely wonderful. I need to get Espelette pepper…next time i’m in Spain. Ohh syrup and five spice! That throws it right into a sweet category. We’ll have to join forces one day and see what we come up with.
Until you’re able to get to la cote basque, get your Espelette pepper here! http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002J6ARK6/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B002J6ARK6&linkCode=as2&tag=nyfojo-20
Oh cool! Thank you! You’re always such a great resource.
Everything is wonderful in this post – the recipe, the spices, the photos….love all the Ottolenghi book too!
Gracias, Chica. They really are great books. So adaptable.
Great pictures – I bet that tastes good 😉
Thanks, Mad Dog! It’s delicious!
Acorn squash is such a great vegetable. I like to stuff them also. You have a great recipe here.
Thanks, Jovina. It’s so full of flavor. I’m sure they’d taste great Italian style too.
I never think of squash as a Middle Eastern vegetable… perhaps I’ve never been in a Middle Eastern country at the right moment! But this sounds so delicious! All those spices and flavors… yum!
I don’t think squash really is a middle Eastern vegetable. Its just a good sponge for flavor so I combined it with middle eastern spices in an experiment that worked quite well. I could have easily made this an Italian dish instead.
This is a perfect meal all contained in an acorn squash! I love the spice combination of flavors for the turkey. And then you topped it with a cool “herby” yogurt! I’m adding turkey and acorn squash to my list today. I’ve been away from the kitchen and blogging for a few weeks, too much work at the office! This will be a nice dinner, looking forward to cooking! 🙂
Enjoy! This too was my first meal back after a lot of work at the office. It’s not too involved but so good. Thanks for your thoughtful comments. It’s tough sometimes when so many things beckon for your time.
wow Amanda – what a creative adaptation. fall squashes are definitely part of the allure of the new season. I love your opening paragraph describing what is new to enjoy instead of what we are leaving behind.
Thanks, Beth. I completely related to your last month’s roundupand how you have to make sure your mood doesnt turn dark with the nights.
Mmmm, this recipe has me nodding in appreciation. Love the spices. And dried currants? hmm, YUM!
Thank you! It really has a great mixture of flavors.
Wow, I love everything in that dish specially the stuffing!
Thanks, Raymund. It’s cool when you start to adapt ideas from a cookbook instead of specific recipes.
I did make this Amanda and we love it! I decided beforehand I would follow your recipe without straying. Well, when it came time to put the quinoa on the stove….I didn’t have any! I didn’t realize we were out. So, one slight adaptation. I made basmatic rice instead. Still did everything else though and it was wonderful. Another fantastic recipe from your blog! Amazing.
Wow. I am so flattered. I’m so glad it turned out so well! If you don’t have the jerusalem cookbook I highly recommend it. Instead of adapting recipes I now adapt concepts. And when they work you get this! You made my night.
Bring on the squash – I love it! What a marvelous dish you created. And another lovely spice photo, too!
Thanks, Hannah. I’m obsessed with spices and their beauty. It kind of reminds me of Egyptian makeup. They enhance beauty and flavor with colorful powders. I totally get why Columbus would risk his life to get to India for spices. I’d be holding onto that mast too.