Butternut squash is a taste of autumn — even when the temperature hit 29°C the day I made this. There's something about the colour, the sweetness, and the weight of a good squash that feels seasonal regardless of what the thermometer says.

This baked stuffed butternut squash is completely vegetarian if you leave out the chorizo. It's also completely delicious with it. The spicy chorizo releases its paprika-infused fat into the onions and vegetables, giving the stuffing a depth that's hard to replicate without it. The homemade gravy, technically, is made with chicken stock — but we don't need to dwell on that.

Baked Stuffed Butternut Squash Recipe

Ingredients — serves 2

1 large butternut squash

Olive oil

Black pepper

For the stuffing:

1 medium onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, crushed and finely chopped

1 medium carrot, grated

1 small courgette, finely chopped

1 small green pepper, finely chopped

Spicy chorizo, sliced (omit for vegetarian)

Small handful cooked rice

1 tbsp poppy seeds

Small handful walnuts, roughly chopped

½ tsp celery seeds

Black pepper to taste

Method

Preheat the oven to 190°C.

With a large sharp knife, carefully slice the squash in two from top to bottom. Scoop out the seeds. Score the flesh in a criss-cross pattern with the tip of your knife.

Drizzle with olive oil, season with black pepper, and bake for 35–40 minutes until the flesh is soft and slightly charred in places. Remove from the oven and allow to cool enough to handle.

While the squash bakes, make the stuffing. Fry the chorizo in a dry pan until the paprika-infused fat starts to ooze out. Remove and roughly chop.

Add the onion to the same pan and cook until softened. Add the garlic, carrot, courgette, green pepper, and chopped chorizo. Stir and cook for a few minutes.

Scoop out some of the squash flesh to create a generous pocket in each half. Add the scooped flesh to the pan along with the cooked rice, poppy seeds, walnuts, and celery seeds. Season with black pepper and stir everything together.

Carefully pack the stuffing into both halves. Place the two halves back together and tie securely with kitchen string.

Return to the oven for a further 15 minutes.

Slice at the table and serve with roast potatoes, roasted carrots, and homemade gravy.

If you're curious about squash varieties beyond butternut, my There's More Than One Type of Squash is worth a read.

This baked stuffed butternut squash is part of my Veg, Fruit & Pulses collection. Wonky photos, proper produce, genuine adventures – The Flexible Chef