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Photo of Spicy stuffed butternut squash by WW

Spicy stuffed butternut squash

6
Points® value
Total Time
1 hr 40 min
Prep
5 min
Cook
1 hr 35 min
Serves
4
Difficulty
Moderate
A halved butternut squash works as a great container for this delicious minced beef mixture with Middle Eastern flavours

Ingredients

Butternut Squash

2 whole, medium, Halved, lengthways and deseeded

Calorie controlled cooking spray

4 spray(s)

Extra lean beef mince (5% fat), raw

400 g

Onion

1 medium, finely chopped

Garlic

2 clove(s), finely chopped

Red pepper

1 medium, deseeded and finely sliced

Mushrooms

200 g, finely sliced

Carrots, raw

1 medium, peeled and finely diced

Tesco Finest Ras El Hanout

2 teaspoon(s)

Ground Cumin

2 teaspoon(s), level

Ground Cinnamon

1 teaspoon(s), level

Chilli flakes

1 pinch

Vegetable stock cube

1 cube(s)

Tomato Purèe

1 tablespoon(s), level

Caster Sugar

1 g, pinch

Tinned Tomatoes

1 can(s), large

Half fat Cheddar cheese

80 g

Parsley, fresh

1 tablespoon(s), chopped, to garnish

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 200°C, fan 180°C, gas mark 6. Put the butternut squash on a large baking tray with the cut side up. Mist with cooking spray and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Roast for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until the flesh is tender.
  2. Meanwhile, make the stuffing. Brown the mince in a large nonstick frying pan over a high heat, using a wooden spoon to break up any lumps. Add the onion and garlic and cook for 5 minutes, until the onion starts to soften. Add the pepper, mushrooms and carrot and cook for a further 5 minutes.
  3. Add all the spices and the chilli flakes, then crumble the stock cube over. Stir to combine and cook for 1 minute before adding the tomato purée, sugar and chopped tomatoes. Stir in 100ml cold water, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10-12 minutes until reduced and thickened but still quite sauce-like.
  4. Preheat the grill to high and remove the squash halves from the oven. When they’re cool enough to handle, carefully carve out enough flesh to make a deep well. Fill each squash with the stuffing mixture, top with the cheese and grill for 3-4 minutes until bubbling and golden. Serve garnished with the parsley.

Notes

Use the scooped-out flesh to make a quick soup – simply purée it with hot vegetable stock, and serve with chopped fresh herbs.

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