With just a little heat and a hint of smokiness the ground bison filling pairs deliciously with roasted acorn squash. Perfect after a day of raking leaves or hitting the pumpkin patch!
Prep Time15 minutesmins
Cook Time35 minutesmins
Total Time50 minutesmins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Acorn Squash, Bison, Chipotle
Servings: 4
Ingredients
2acorn squash~1-½ lb. each, cut in half and seeds cleaned out
1Tbsp.canola or grapeseed oildivided
½cupdiced sweet onion
½cupdiced red bell pepper
½lb.ground bison
1tsp.smoked paprika
¼tsp.ground black pepper
1-1/2Tbsp.diced chipotle pepper in adobo sauceseeded
1cupcooked quinoa
¼cupshredded Mexican blend cheeseor Colby Jack
2Tbsp.pumpkin seeds
avocado slicesoptional
Instructions
Preheat oven to 425° F. Brush cut edges of the squash with 1 tsp. oil and place squash, cut side down on sheet.
Roast squash for 25 -30 minutes, until knife pierces skin without resistance.
While squash is roasting, heat remaining oil in large sauté pan over medium heat.
Add onions and bell pepper to pan and cook until just soft (~5 minutes).
Add ground bison, paprika and ground pepper and cook until meat is cooked.
Mix in chipotle peppers and quinoa.
Take squash from the oven and turn over (the edges should be golden brown). Add ¼ of the bison mixture to each squash half. Top with 1 Tbsp. shredded cheese and place back in the oven for 5 minutes, or until cheese melts.
Top each ½ with pumpkin seeds and garnish with avocado slices.
Notes
The filling can be made a day ahead and stored in the refrigerator. Just add to the squash halves before cooking. You may need to add 10 minutes to the cooking time to bring it to the right temperature.