Cheesy Spinach Stuffed Squash

Fall is the perfect time for cozy, veggie-packed dishes, and today’s recipe for Spinach Stuffed Squash is a standout. Roasted acorn squash halves are filled with a creamy spinach-cheese mixture that tastes just like spinach dip - only heartier. It's filling enough for a meatless main, works beautifully as a holiday side dish, and keeps well in the fridge for easy lunches all week. If you love cheese, spinach, and fall flavors, this recipe is guaranteed to be a hit.

Everything you need to make this recipe

This roasted stuffed squash packs a serious flavor punch from tangy cheeses, warm spices, and creamiest filling that you'll ever have. Here's everything you'll need to make it:

Squash – The recipe is sized for acorn squash, but you can easily swap butternut or spaghetti squash. For large cavities, you may need to double the filling.

Spinach – I use fresh spinach, although frozen will be fine. Use 3-4 ounces of frozen spinach, thaw, and drain well to remove excess moisture.

Cheeses – Soft, melting type cheeses like cream cheese, shredded parmesan, and mozzarella work best.

Vegetable or Chicken Broth – For a truly vegetarian dish, use vegetable broth. If you prefer, you can use chicken broth, however.

For the creamy filling – You will also need heavy whipping cream and sour cream to increase the creaminess factor. The spinach, squash and cheeses are the star flavors, so the chicken broth, garlic, and olive oil serve to highlight that flavor while melding everything together in a perfectly spoon-able side dish.

1. Roasting the squash.

Most squashes are going to bake and roast the same amount of time. You don’t need to peel the squash so start by cutting the squash in half and scooping out the seeds. If you find that your squash is too hard to cut, pop it in the microwave or warm in the oven a few minutes. To make the squash stand up like a bowl, cut just enough off the bottom to make it flat.

There is no need to turn over during baking.

2. Making the Stuffing

The spinach filling is very straight forward. You don’t have to remove the stems, but I prefer the texture without the stems. You can see in the photo above that the filling is smooth and creamy, but not overly thick.

3. Stuffing the squash

The mixture should nearly fill the void left from scooping out the seeds. Top with a generous pile of mozzarella and shredded parmesan. That cheese topping is going to melt down to a melty, slightly crusty topping.

Serving and Storage Suggestions

What to serve with stuffed squash: I usually serve this with a very simple protein like Cajun Blackened Shrimp, Parmesan Crusted Pork Chops, or Spicy Blackened Chicken. This can also be used as an excellent vegetarian main dish if you wish. It also makes a yummy way to mix each bite and spread the flavor around. I serve the squash immediately out of the oven, so the cheese is perfectly melted but tell everyone they are super-hot.

Store: Leftovers are really good! If I know there will be leftovers, I store them in an airtight container or wrapped in foil in the fridge the same way they come out of the oven – with the squash intact. It keeps the filling separated and easier to reheat in the microwave. They are good for 4-5 days.

Reheat: This recipe keeps and reheats well both in the oven and in the microwave.

• OVEN:  Cover the pan with foil and bake at 350 degrees for approximately 30 minutes or until hot and bubbly.
• MICROWAVE:  You can also reheat individual servings in the microwave by transferring to a microwave safe plate and microwaving for 90 seconds. You may have to stir a bit to avoid cold spots and continue to microwave at 30 second intervals until heated through.