A Sweet Holiday Twist Acorn Squash Casserole

Introducing a sweet potato alternative to a Holiday fave – acorn squash casserole. Now cue those who say, “BuT tHaT’s A vEgEtAbLe..“

Honestly, once all is said and done, you won’t even be able to tell the difference between the squash and sweet potato. Plus, if you can’t have SP (or you’re avoiding the starches – I get it) you definitely won’t feel like you’re giving up anything, especially if you’re loading on the toppings like marshmallows or candied pecans.

The cinnamon and nutmeg in the squash mixture give it this earthy, flavorful taste, so it really doesn’t take much to make this dish sweet enough to beat the sweet potato.

The onnnnly downside is if you don’t rush the cooked, mashed squash through a cheese cloth…it can get watery. But if you don’t, it’s really not that big of a deal.

Don’t believe my hype? Rather than making an entire dish, dip your toes in the water by simply halving the acorn squash (remove the seeds), dousing them with butter, cinnamon, nutmeg, and some honey, baking them then topping them off with a crushed pecan and walnut streusel. Or marshmallows – whatever you prefer.

*Tip: these make perfect 1-2 serving sized portions, and are a visually appealing dish for any gathering!

I’ve conquered and perfected this recipe three times and I love it even more than I did the last. I’ll bet kids won’t even realize they’re actually eating a vegetable (my husband didn’t).

Now, now, I understand that the Holidays are for splurging, feasting and devouring – trust me, this one will be devoured at your next Holiday gathering or meal. What I am not responsible for is when people argue that it’s gone before seconds.

Potato free sweet acorn squash casserole

theMRSingLink

A twist on a Holidy favorite – meet sweet potato casserole's cousin, Acorn Squash Casserole. I can PROMISE you won't even notice the difference.

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Prep Time 40 minutes mins

Cook Time 25 minutes mins

Course Side Dish

Servings 6 people

Ingredients

  

Ingredients for casserole topping(s) – (half brown sugar pecan/walnut + half classic marshmallow)

• 1 cup pecans (chopped)
• 1 cup walnuts (chopped)
• 2 tbsp flour
• 3 tbsp unsalted butter (at room temperature, not melted)
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 2 cups mini mashmellows

Ingredients for casserole filling

• 4 large acorn squash (mashed amount fits in a 9×12 casserole dish)
• 1/4 cup heavy cream (this adds sweetness/creaminess, but you can also do without it)
• 2 tbsp cinnamon
• 1 1/2 tbsp nutmeg
• 2 tbsp raw honey (or maple syrup)

Instructions

 

• Preheat your oven to 400F and remove butter from fridge so it can get to room temperature. Wash and halve your acorn squash (removing the stem portion), digging out the seeds in the middle. Baste each of the insides with ghee or melted butter before placing on a large baking sheet (insides facing down).
• Bake for 40-45 minutes until completely tender. In the meantime, chop your pecans and walnuts (I kept some whole for a nice texture) and place in a small ziploc with cinnamon, flour and brown sugar. Set aside.
• Once the acorn squash is done, you can either leave the skin on, remove some or try your best to scrape out as much of the squash contents as possible. I tend to just leave the skin on, and eat it. You hardly notice it, it gives the squash an "earthy" flavor IMO, and it is edible when cooked. But that is up to you to decide. *Note – leaving the skin on will turn the squash a hint of a greenish color – this is normal.*
• Obviously you want to mash your acorn squash – however you'd like. I used a handheld blender, but a ricer or masher would work. If you're leaving the skin on, you might have to blend/chop that in some way.
• When blending/mashing, add in the heavy cream (for that creamier consistency), nutmeg and cinnamon. You will really begin to notice that you can't tell the difference between this and the classic sweet potato!
• Mix everything together thoroughly before placing in the casserole dish.
• Add in the butter to your ziploc for the pecan/walnut topping, mixing together the butter with the brownsugar, nuts and flour. You want this pretty crumbly. Then layer over top half of your casserole.
• Next layer the marshmallows over the other half before placing back in the oven at 350F for 20 minutes, or until contents are warm on the inside and marshmallows and topping are roasted.

Notes

**Servings is set to 6 because 4 large whole acorn squash cooked down doesn’t actually feed a ton of people. 1 large acorn squash likely weighs approx. 1/2 – 3/4 of a pound feeds two. So if you want to feed 10+ you will need more than 8 large whole acorn squash (and that’s probably without considering seconds).

Keyword acorn squash, casserole, holiday, potato-free, side dish, thanksgiving