In need of a gorgeous vegetarian Christmas main that’s easy to make and can be prepared in advance? This Cranberry, Feta and Quinoa stuffed Butternut Squash could be exactly what you are looking for! It’s also gluten free, can easily be adapted to make it vegan and dairy free, and is chock full of goodness!!
There is something just totally wonderful about the combination of mint, cinnamon and cumin, use it to flavour quinoa, add some feta and cranberries and stuff it into a butternut squash and you have something totally awesome on your hands.
I am a huge fan of these Merchant Gourmet ready to eat packets at the moment and the red and white quinoa is one of my favourites. Quinoa is not exactly hard to cook (boil for 10-15 minutes and drain), but sometimes it’s helpful to have an even easier shortcut, especially at Christmas time when there is so much else going on!
Using a ready to eat pack of quinoa in this recipe makes this dish a really speedy one to assemble – less than 10 minutes of hands on time and the rest of the time it is in the oven, doing its thing.
This Cranberry, Feta and Quinoa stuffed Butternut Squash is also a great make-ahead recipe, because it is really easy to reheat the next day. Simply place the stuffed butternut squash in a cold oven, turn the oven up to 200C (180C fan / gas mark 6 / 400F) and heat for about 20 minutes until piping hot all the way through.
I originally conceived this as a great veggie main – perfect for any day of the week, but especially Christmas Day. But if you are not veggie, it would also make a great side dish – perhaps as an accompaniment to leftover ham or turkey on Boxing Day.
If, on the other hand, you need this to be vegan or dairy free, simply swap the feta for a handful of pistachios, pecan nuts or walnuts (or even a combination of all three!).
I really like the tartness of fresh cranberries, but if you prefer a sweeter taste use sweetened dried cranberries instead. If cranberries aren’t your thing, you could use raisins, sultanas or chopped dried apricots.
This is the sort of dish that would go with lots of different wines, but I would suggest a great match would be an oaked Chardonnay from Australia, New Zealand or Chile. Alternatively a fruity rose from the South of France or Spain would also go well here.
If you like this recipe…
…you might also like:
- Cumin Roasted Cauliflower and Butternut Squash (Vegan)
- Easy Butternut Squash Macaroni Cheese
- Butternut Squash, Cauliflower and Red Lentil Dhal (Vegan)
- Warm Christmas Rice Salad with Butternut Squash and Pomegranate Seeds
- Butternut Squash, Chilli and Coconut Milk Soup (Vegan)
- Warm Butternut Squash, Harissa and Halloumi Salad
Cranberry, Feta and Quinoa Stuffed Butternut Squash
Ingredients
- 2 large butternut squash cut in half lengthways and seeds removed
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 red onion diced
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 250 g cooked quinoa I used 1 pack of Merchant Gourmet ready to eat red and white quinoa
- 200 g fresh cranberries defrosted first, if frozen
- 100 g feta cheese crumbled
- 2 tablespoons chopped mint plus extra for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 200C /180C fan / gas mark 6 / 400F.
- Cut the two butternut squash in half lengthways and remove the seeds using a spoon. Drizzle with a little olive oil, sprinkle over some salt and pepper and roast for 1 hour in your preheated oven.
- About 10 minutes before the butternut squash is due to come out of the oven, gently fry the diced onion in 1 tablespoon of olive oil for 5 minutes, then add 2 teaspoons cinnamon and 2 teaspoons cumin and fry for 1 more minute.
- Add the whole pack of Merchant Gourmet quinoa and stir to coat the quinoa in the onions and spices. Turn off the heat. Add most of the cranberries and feta, and 2 tablespoons of chopped mint and stir gently.
- Take the butternut squash halves out of the oven and scoop out the flesh, leaving a ½ cm border. Roughly chop the flesh and add it to the quinoa mixture.
- Fill the butternut squash halves with the quinoa mixture and top with the remaining cranberries and feta.
- Cook the stuffed butternut squash halves for 10-15 until the feta is brown on top and the filling is warmed through. Sprinkle with extra mint and serve.
Notes
- This Cranberry, Feta and Quinoa stuffed Butternut Squash is also a great make-ahead recipe, because it is really easy to reheat the next day. Simply place the stuffed butternut squash in a cold oven, turn the oven up to 200C / 180C fan / gas mark 6 / 400F and heat for about 20 minutes until piping hot all the way through.
- Suitable for freezing.
- Nutrition information is approximate and meant as a guideline only.
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Debbie says
Hi ed, this does look and sound appetizing. I am always on the lookout for new ways of eating vegetables and would never have thought to stuff a butternut squash. We do eat meat so this would make a nice side to some meat. We don’t get fresh or frozen cranberries here, do you think soaking dried cranberries would work in the recipe?
xx
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Debbie! I’m sure dried cranberries would work just fine. I don’t even think they would need to be soaked first – so long as they are the kind that can be eaten straight from the packet! The taste would be a little sweeter, but I think that would go really well with the spices, cheese and mint. I think this would also work well with raisins, sultanas or dried apricots if cranberries are hard to come by. Eb x
Louise Fairweather says
This looks delicious!
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Louise! It tastes as good as it looks – if not better!! Eb x
Bethany @ athletic avocado says
WOW! So much incredible flavor you got going on in this delicious looking stuffed squash! This is perfect for the holidays!
Eb Gargano says
Thanks so much, Bethany! I totally agree, this is a great dish for this time of year – full of Christmassy flavour, but super easy!! Eb x
Karly says
This is like a pretty little delicious boat of winter. LOVE all of these flavors together! You’ve got a good one here!
Eb Gargano says
Thanks so much Karly!! These flavours go so well together and I always love it when a recipe that tastes good, looks good too – very satisfying!! Eb x
Angela / Only Crumbs Remain says
I absolutely love the sound of this Eb. It’s so pretty with those Chrismas-sy colours and flavours, I can imagine meat eaters perhaps being a little green eyed when they see the vegetarian option being brought to the table! And yes, I completely agree, those Merchant Gourmet packets are absolutely fab,
Angela x
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Angela – I think you are right: the meat eaters would definitely all be rather miffed if this was the veggie option! LOVE the Merchant Gourmet packets, they make my life so much easier!! Eb x
Sarah James @ Tales From The Kitchen Shed says
Your butternut squash looks delicious Eb, I love the idea of adding cumin and cinnamon to the quinoa. I bet the salty Feta and sour cranberries add a real depth of flavour.
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Sarah! I have a thing about the combination of cumin, cinnamon and mint – it just works so well! And feta for me just make everything better 😉 Eb x
Charlotte Oates says
The colour of these is absolutely gorgeous, it almost seems a shame to eat them! Although they sound delicious too. I’m looking forward to seeing what you get up to with those chestnuts as I have a half open pack in the fridge to use up, at the moment they’re destined to be roasted with some sprouts.
Eb Gargano says
Haha – that’s why I made two for the photos! One to look at and one to devour!!! They do taste insanely good – don’t you just love it when a recipe you create in your head really works well in reality? I knew this should work well in theory as the flavours are all so good together, but I was super chuffed with how well they tasted in real life 🙂 The chestnut recipe is now up – you can find it here: https://www.easypeasyfoodie.com/lamb-stew-spices-butternut-squash-chestnuts/ Eb x
Kirsty Hijacked By Twins says
I love cranberries and they sound delicious in this recipe. This is a must try! Thank you for sharing with #CookBlogShare x
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Kirsty 🙂 The cranberries are so lovely in this recipe – the sourness just marries so well with the sweetness of the butternut squash and the saltiness of the feta. I can’t wait to make this one again!! Eb x
Vicki Montague says
Oh my gosh! This looks amazing. My mum and step dad are veggie so I may well do this on Christmas day to make a change from nut roast! Lovely. Thank you!
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Vicki 🙂 It would make a fab main for veggie Christmas – and it is even more fabulous as you can make it the night before and just reheat on Christmas day, if you want, so less juggling to do on Christmas day itself – hooray!! Do let me know how you get on if you make it. Eb x
Mel says
Eb, how do you do that? Every single one of your recipes sounds like what I would order at the restaurant! This is exactly the sort of food I love, but no one else at home likes butternut squash so I don’t have it very often (unless I’m eating out). It looks like my ‘free from’ Christmas round up is going to be linking, well, to your blog, haha! Thanks for joining in again with #FreeFromFridays. xxx
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Mel! Such a kind thing to say!! How can anyone not like butternut squash???? I absolutely adore it – and luckily so do the rest of my family so we have it often. Poor you not getting it very often – you really do need to move in 😉 I would be delighted to be included in your Christmas roundup – please feel free!! Eb x
Mel says
Forgot to say… ordered a couple of packs of the chestnuts from Merchant Gourmet just yesterday. Great minds think alike!
Eb Gargano says
Ah, indeed they do!! Xx
Kate - gluten free alchemist says
I adore butternut and definitely perfect for Christmas. This looks so beautiful Eb…. the colours and combination of flavours sound divine. Lovely lovely recipe xx
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Kate – I am so happy with how this one turned out – the flavours work so well together and so perfect and festive for Christmas. Plus gluten free – thanks to lovely, lovely quinoa which I need to cook more with as it is such wonderful stuff. Eb x
Mandy says
What a delicious looking veggie meal. I would be delighted to have this for my Christmas lunch or indeed at any time!
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Mandy. I have to say I would quite happily have this for my Christmas lunch too – and quite a lot easier to make than a turkey roast dinner too, I can tell you!! Eb x
Corina says
What a beautiful main course! I’d happily eat this for Christmas if I was looking for a vegetarian option. Thanks so much for sharing with #CookOnceEatTwice
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Corina…it would make a great veggie option on Christmas day. Thought, as Angela pointed out, there would probably be some rather jealous meat eaters! Eb x
emma amoscato says
My parents are vegetarian and this would make a great Christmasy dish for them. It looks so festive! #freefromfridays
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Emma – it would make a great veggie main for Christmas or any day really!! Thanks for your kind comments 🙂 Eb x
Petra / Be Healthy Now says
I really love the look of this, what a wonderful recipe! Pinning for later!
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Petra 🙂 I’m really pleased with how this one turned out. It tastes amazing – that combo of cumin, cinnamon and mint just works so well and I love how pretty it is. So perfect for Christmas day – but easy enough for everyday! Eb x
Petra says
This is my kind of flavours! It sounds amazing! 🙂
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Petra, the flavours work so well together and it is incredibly easy to make 🙂 Eb x
Claire says
Can you make this in advance and freeze?
Eb Gargano says
Hmmm – I have never tried it, but there’s no reason why it shouldn’t work. You can certainly make it the day before and reheat – I have done that before very successfully. Let me know how you get on if you try it! Eb 🙂
Yvonne says
Just made and eaten this
Delicious and so easy!
Thank you
Eb Gargano says
Yay! I am so pleased to hear that. Thank you so much for taking the time to leave this lovely review. Eb 🙂