Serves 6 as a main course
25 minutes preparation time
45 minutes cooking time
3 acorn squash
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup chopped shallots
5 garlic cloves, chopped
2 tablespoons curry
1 tablespoon fresh thyme
3 carrots, scrubbed and sliced
1 red pepper, cored and diced
1 teaspoon salt
a few fresh grinds of pepper
1 1/2 cups small French lentils
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
Cut the squash in half from top to bottom (through the stem) and remove the seeds. Lay the squash face down on a large rimmed baking sheet. Put them in the oven and pour a bit of water onto the baking sheet. The water should just coat most of the sheet. Depending on the size of the baking sheet, this could be from 1 to 2 cups of water. Bake the squash until they are tender but still hold their shape, about 20 minutes. Remove them from the oven and let them cool a bit.
Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees.
Meanwhile, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat in a large saute pan. Add the shallots and garlic and cook until they begin to soften, 2 to 3 minutes. Mix curry with 2 tablespoons of water and add it to the pan. Add the thyme and stir. Add the carrots and red pepper and stir until they are coated with the curry. Add the salt and pepper, the lentils and about 3 cups of water and stir. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer until the lentils are tender, approximately 20 minutes. Keep an eye on the lentils as they simmer and, if needed, add a bit more water to make sure there is enough to maintain the simmer.
When the squash have cooled enough to handle, scoop the flesh out of the shells, leaving just enough to allow the shells to hold their shape. Coarsley chop the flesh and stir it in with the lentils. Fill the squash shells with the lentil mixture. Depending on the size of your squash, there may be more filling than you need (save it for quesadillas or to eat with rice). Return the stuffed squash to the oven and heat until they are warmed through. If the lentils are fairly hot when you stuff the shells this will only take about 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and serve immediately.