My husband and love Acorn squash. We make it a heartier dish by adding a handful of chopped walnuts to the center under the sugar and butter.

I've never understood why people put sugary stuff on their squash. Especially acorn, which is one of the sweeter varieties of this wonderful, versatile vegetable. I simply bake it with salt, pepper and a slab of butter in the middle. Or, if I want to serve it later, I scoop out the flesh after baking, put it in a microwave-safe dish, place pats of butter over it, and put it in the frig to be warmed in the microwave when needed. I always do this at Thanksgiving when oven space is at a premium. Please - I implore you! Try squash just once without the maple syrup or brown sugar. I'm sure you'll agree that its sweet enough without the added calories.

Just a note about the cutting of the squash which I have been making for a million years with syrup and without!! Insert paring knife twice on the line where you will eventually cut squash and then microwave maybe 30 seconds to a minute.....simple to split afterwards. Love the site.

If I want to make plain acorn squash, do I need to alter the instructions apart from eliminating step 3? Also, what is the reasoning behind cutting the acorn squash lengthwise - does it not work to cut it horizontally? I am planning on serving the plain squash as a gluten-free "bread bowl" and putting chili inside, so you can scoop out some cooling, sweet squash with each bite of spiciness. Yummers!

Thanks for the 2 great tips - about adding 1/4 inch of water to the bottom of the baking sheet so the skins don't burn and also on scoring and then microwaving for 30 seconds to faciliate easier cutting.

To make a healthier squash, we use Orange juice instead of butter. Helps to soften and moisten the squash w/o the fat.

This is SO yummy I am so glad that this is on the web!!!!

Hopefully someone can help me. I'm planning on making this for thanksgiving but I have never had it before, neither has the rest of my family. So, when the squash is cut in half, how do you serve it to a large group of people? Slice it, scoop it out, what? Obviously I will make a few squashes but I have no clue how to dish it out.

Thanks!!!

Yum! This recipe with the suggestions have been quite helpful in baking my first acorn squash. I'm thinking of adding apples and pecans. Can't wait. The orange juice suggestion instead of butter sounded lovely!

I made the recipe as suggested in the original and it was great. One tip I learned off another site that worked well was before you cut the squash in half, cut a little slice off one side so that you have a flat side to stabilize it on while cutting in half. Also I would say 1/6 of a squash is the perfect quantity per person at Thanksgiving. We don't eat the skins.

This is the way I've prepared acorn squash all my life, and while I came here tonight looking for a new technique, the memories (and of course, your prose) drove me to make it this way again. For me, this is comfort food.

A great meal with acorn squash is to cut the top off, and just enough off the bottom so it stands on it's own. Scoop out the insides and fill with a puree soup or my favorite is a french canadien pea soup, and put the top back on. Bake in the oven for approx. 1hr depending on the size of the acorn..you get the soup and can eat the delicious bowl. (I try to stay away from soups made of other squashes to make this one more pronounced) enjoy

I'm a new member and this is only my second time at having acorn squash. My first time was a couple of years ago at the in laws and I liked it so much I kept going for more! It made my mother in law happy because everybody else was fussy and skipping the squash. This is my second time and again I love it! I love it even more! What an exciting discovery! I am so into this! I'm the only one so far in my family to like it and it's a good thing since I get more for myself! Not for long though since I have a 9 month baby who loves butternut squash in the jar. I just had leftovers for lunch (a whole half of squash as a side dish with a goat cheese omelette). It was excellent and I was more excited about the leftover squash than the omelette! Someone asked if you should eat the skin... I totally do! Couldn't imagine not eating it! It's adding just enough texture with the rest of the soft sweet flesh. Will do this again and again and again!

Being a bartender I use a little ammeretto or grand marnier instead of the syrup and brown sugar.

I have always used butter, brown sugar, salt & pepper to coat the pieces. going to add a little Triple Sec this year, thanks. QUESTION: If I par-cook/microwave the squash then cool/store it before baking will it compromise its consistency &/or flavour? Oven space is scarce and 'My oven runneth over'.

Oooh, this looks amazing. I'm going to do just that this weekend, and fill the halves with couscous right before serving.

I used to make my acorn squash with brown sugar also, BUT for some of you that don't really care for the really sweet squash...try just butter (or margarine) salt & pepper, make sure while cooking it baste the squash with the melted butter already inside the squash every 10 minutes its soooooo good! My grandma has been making it this way for years & years. It brings out the natural sweetness already in the squash. Hope you enjoy let me know what ya think anyone :o)

I made it recently without the sweet stuff by salting it after roasting, then returning it to the oven with a dusting of fresh grated parmesan cheese and a scant handful of chopped pecans. It was really good!

I just made this with a carnival squash that came in my CSA box. It's delicious, lovely, and simple. Thanks, Elise!

You can put nutmeg mixed in with butter or even olive oil or grapeseed oil instead of the syrup/sugar combo and it will have a nice zing to it!

I made this tonight and added fried beans and corn (with chopped onions, garlic, and hot pepper) in the middle. Was so good!

We had this for dinner today with some rice pilaf with almonds, and cooked carrots. Pretty yummy meal ^.^

I think I would normally cook the squash with just butter and salt, but I wasn't sure because I never made this on my own before, so I searched the web to give me an idea on what to do, and I saw this recipe and thought I would give it a try since I had real maple syrup in the fridge. Came out really good :)
Thanks!

What is the oven temp with this recipe. Some of my acorns in the garden are near ripe and I am dying to try them. I am also told that after picking I need to "cure" them for 10 days or so for a sweeter squash, true?

Step 1, 400°F. No idea on the "curing". ~Elise

Tks everyone for tips. Here are 2 more:
1. Squash becomes easy schmeazy to cut if you bake it first.
2. Two things to do with seeds: (A) If you're baking the squash, you can leave them there til the last 15 min, then tease them to the top with a fork so you can butter/spice them up for a crunchy topping. (B) If you just like roasted seeds, leave them in the squash while you bake. Easiest way to remove them for roasting is to take 2 forks and lift them out. Fork tines at an angle to each other make good shears to lop off the strings. I save seeds in the freezer til I have lots to roast.

Just want to comment on some comments:
I eat rind on home grown squash if not too tough. Store bought I typically don't because they are treated with waxes and what-not; not that it is toxic but I don't want to eat it. It also depends on the species and the age.
You don't have to cure acorn squash, the butternuts and thicker skinned gourd types typically get "cured". And like most starchy foods, the starches of all squash sweeten over time. I tend to hold off on eating home grown squashes and keep them cool for a month or so before eating. The maple syrup touch sounds good, sometimes I also add fruit juices-orange, mango etc to the pan. Squash is great sweetened and unsweetened.

I microwaved my butternut squash but splitting it in half and covering it with plastic wrap, but after it had been sitting for a few minutes out of the microwave, there were these tiny white spots that developed on the surface, almost looking like rock salt or white beads of condensation. Anyone know what this is?

My mother-in-law taught me to bake the squash cut side down in a baking pan with a couple of inches of water in it. Then when they're nearly done, turn them over and add the butter and whatever else you want in the center. (I use loose browned sausage along with a little bit of brown sugar and butter.) BUT the very best way to serve acorn squash is in PIE...yes, pie! Use your pumpkin pie recipe but substitute the meat of the squash for the pumpkin, and it is absolutely delicious! I cook the squash, cool, and spoon it into baggies--equal to the amount of pumpkin the pie recipe calls for--and then I'm set for making pies later.