Winter squash stuffed with lemon-herb rice

Another day, another squash.

Feeling emboldened by my squash stuffed with mushrooms, onions, and celery, I decided to go for another one: winter squash stuffed with lemon-herb rice. It's another free CSA recipe, so I'm reprinting the recipe again.

Winter squash stuffed with lemon-herb rice

Serves 6

• 3 festival, sweet dumpling, or other small winter squash (I used 1 acorn squash and 2 others that sort of looked like acorn squash but with golden tones - not festival squash but close)
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 cups COOKED brown rice (in caps for a reason - 1 cup uncooked rice makes enough cooked rice for this recipe)
• 1/4 cup water
• Juice of 1/2 large lemon
• 1/2 tsp. lemon zest
• 1 tbsp. soy sauce
• 1/8 cup minced fresh parsley
• 1/8 cup minced fresh sage
• 1 tsp. minced fresh rosemary
• 1/2 tsp. dried thyme (or 1 tbsp. minced fresh)
• 2 tbsp. pine nuts, lightly toasted
• Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut the squash in half and remove the seeds and strings. (Save for roasting later!) Sprinkle halves with salt and pepper and place cut-side-down on an oiled baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes or until tender. (If you use a larger squash, be sure to test for doneness with a fork.) Remove from oven but keep oven turned on.

While the squash are cooking, prepare the lemon-herb rice. Lightly coat a non-stick pan with olive oil and turn heat to medium. Saute the onions until they begin to brown, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Add the rice, 1/4 cup water, lemon juice and zest, soy sauce, and herbs. Stir well, cover, and cook on low heat until just warm. (If you have just made the rice, you might not need the water and it is probably already warm.) Add the toasted pine nuts, salt, and pepper to taste.

Turn the squash over and stuff the rice into the cavities of the squash. On the same baking sheet or in a baking dish, cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake until heated through, about 20 minutes (or less if the rice and squash are still hot). Serve warm, garnished with additional fresh herbs, if desired.

I served with a CSA steak:

I really liked this one, especially the rice, which was very flavorful. I left out the pine nuts and it was still delicious, but I would probably use them if I remember to buy the nuts. I am also a dumbass and I thought it said 3 cups of rice, not cooked rice, so I was THIS CLOSE to cooking a completely ridiculous amount of rice per squash. Luckily I caught my mistake in time.

And this is lunch today, hoorah!