These vegan stuffed butternut squash boats are filled with black beans, quinoa, and fire roasted tomatoes. With southwestern spices and topped with cilantro and avocado, you’ll have a healthy, delicious and filling whole food plant-based meal.
Oh my goodness! This vegan stuffed butternut squash recipe is becoming my new favorite this fall! Not because it tastes amazing, but it does. Not because it uses simple ingredients, which it also does. Not because it’s full of plant-protein, and chock full of vitamins and nutrients, but it also has that too. It’s because my kids went bananas for it!
I’ll be honest. Sometimes I make a plant-based vegan meal for my kids and I’m really excited to give it to them. I’ll think it’s totally kid friendly and they’ll be ready with forks in hand to give it a try, and then they give me the face.
You know the face. Their little noses scrunch up and they give me the side eye. Ugh! I’ve failed. They hate it. I completely deflate. Not every recipe I make is a winner with these two picky eaters, but I keep trying.
In any case, I made this vegan stuffed butternut squash for my husband and I, thinking the kids would probably give me the face with this one, but nope, they totally stole our dinner!
After assembling the two halves of the stuffed butternut squash, I had some leftover black beans and quinoa in the skillet. While my back was turned my three year old dragged his chair over to stick in his spoon. Thankfully the skillet was cool!
Before I knew it both my kids were asking for their own helping. Winner!!
Why You’ll Love this Vegan Stuffed Butternut Squash Recipe…
- If your kids are like mine they will love it!
- Full of Southwest Flavors
- Healthy nutrient and vitamin rich whole foods
- A new way to enjoy butternut squash
- Gluten-Free and Oil-Free
- Whole Food Plant-Based Compliant
- Allergy friendly ingredients
- A plant protein rich and filling meal
Ingredients You’ll Need
- 1 butternut squash halved
- 1 15 oz can of organic black beans rinsed and drained
- 1 15 oz can of fire roasted tomatoes
- ½ cup of quinoa
- 1 cup of vegetable stock
- 1 avocado
- 1 bunch of cilantro
- 1 cup of frozen corn
- 1 tsp of chili powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp onion powder
Tools You’ll Need
How to Make Vegan Stuffed Butternut Squash – Step by Step
Step 1: Preheat oven to 400 F. Cut your butternut squash in half. Scoop pulp and seeds out of the center. Place on baking sheet lined with aluminum foil or parchment paper cut side down. Bake for 55-60 minutes.
Step 2: While butternut squash is baking, prepare the quinoa. In a saucepan bring ½ cup of quinoa and 1 cup of vegetable stock to a boil. Cover with lid. Simmer on low for 15 minutes or until all liquid had been absorbed. Remove from heat and set aside.
Step 3: In a large skillet combine black beans and fire roasted tomatoes on medium heat. Add quinoa. Stir to combine. Heat for 5 minutes. Add frozen corn and spices. Stir to combine. Set aside.
Step 4: When butternut squash is done roasting, remove from oven. Squash will be extremely hot to handle out of the oven. Flip the squash to check that it’s cooked through. It should be golden brown and soft when pierced with a fork. Scoop squash out of the center while still leaving a half inch border around the shell.
Step 5: Spoon black bean quinoa filling into butternut squash halves. Serve topped with cilantro and avocado.
Tips for Making Vegan Stuffed Butternut Squash
- No need for oil-Most recipes call for butter or oil when roasted your butternut squash. This is completely unnecessary. The squash will roast nicely without any oil. The reason oil is for flavor and to help keep the flesh of the squash from sticking to the baking sheet. If you use parchment paper or aluminum foil you won’t have a problem with sticking.
- Handle Roasted Butternut Squash with Care-When you take the butternut squash out of the oven it will be extremely hot. Do not use your hands to handle the squash. Use tongs or a spatula along with an oven mitt to flip the squash over.
- Golden Brown and Soft-You’ll know your butternut squash is done when it’s a golden brown color and is soft when pierced with a fork.
- Scoop out the Center-Don’t scoop all of the butternut squash out of the skin. Leave a nice ½ inch border all around. Reserve the rest to make butternut squash soup or sprinkle with salt and pepper and have as a side dish at your next meal. Or in my case give it to your kids and put the black bean and quinoa stuffing on top.
Variations
- Instead of black beans and quinoa you can use brown or wild rice.
- Instead of fire roasted tomatoes you can use diced tomatoes of a pint of cherry tomatoes cut into halves
- Add more spice. If you like spicier flavors add ¼ tsp of cayenne pepper and increase the amount of chili powder.
Why is this vegan stuffed butternut squash healthy?
- Butternut Squash-Low in calories yet packed with nutrients, butternut squash is high vitamins A and C, magnesium and potassium.
- Black Beans-High in fiber, potassium, folate, and vitamin B6. Black beans help lower cholesterol and decrease risk of heart disease. A rich source of plant protein.
- Quinoa-Also a rich source of plant protein it is one of the only plants that contains all amino acids making it a complete protein source.
- No-Oil-This recipe eliminates the use of oil. Still big on flavor but without the added fat and calories.
- Plant-Protein-The quinoa coupled with the black beans and butternut squash make for a high plant protein meal. This helps keep you feeling fuller longer and provide you with much needed nutrients.
Can you eat the butternut squash skin?
Butternut squash has a tough skin that is not edible. One of the things that I struggled with for years when it came to butternut squash was cutting and peeling it. It was extremely taxing, and I worried I was going to lose a finger trying to chop it.
With this recipe you only need to cut the squash down the middle. You don’t need to peel it. Roast it in the oven, and scoop out a portion of the center. When eating your vegan stuffed butternut squash boat scoop around the edge, but don’t consume the skin. After it’s roasted it will easily breakaway from the skin leaving you the delicious flesh to consume.
Can you freeze stuffed butternut squash?
I would not freeze this recipe. It tastes best fresh and will become a bit mealy after it’s frozen and reheated.
What do you serve with Vegan Stuffed Butternut Squash?
This is a one dish meal that is full of vegetables and plant protein. Amp up the veggies by serving it with a side of steamed vegetables, broccoli is always one of my favorites. Or serve with a small side salad. Add it to your vegan prep meals for the week!
Here are some ideas for toppings on your Vegan Stuffed Butternut Squash Boats:
- Diced Avocado
- Chopped Cilantro
- Salsa
- Guacamole
- Vegan Sour Cream
CHECK OUT THESE OTHER SQUASH RECIPES!
If you’ve tried this vegan stuffed butternut squash with black beans and quinoa, please rate the recipe and let me know how it turned out. You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest for more plant-based family recipes your whole family will enjoy!
Vegan Stuffed Butternut Squash Boats with Black Beans and Quinoa
Ingredients
- 1 whole butternut squash
- 15 oz can of organic black beans
- 15 oz can of fire roasted tomatoes
- ½ cup quinoa
- 1 cup vegetable stock
- 1 cup frozen corn
- ½ avocado diced
- ¼ cup cilantro chopped
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp onion powder
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 F. Cut your butternut squash in half. Scoop pulp and seeds out of the center. Place on baking sheet lined with aluminum foil or parchment paper cut side down. Bake for 55-60 minutes.
- While butternut squash is baking, prepare the quinoa. In a saucepan bring ½ cup of quinoa and 1 cup of vegetable stock to a boil. Cover with lid. Simmer on low for 15 minutes or until all liquid had been absorbed. Remove from heat and set aside.
- In a large skillet combine black beans and fire roasted tomatoes on medium heat. Add quinoa. Stir to combine. Heat for 5 minutes. Add frozen corn and spices. Stir to combine. Set aside.
- When butternut squash is done roasting, remove from oven. Squash will be extremely hot to handle out of the oven. Flip the squash to check that it's cooked through. It should be golden brown and soft when pierced with a fork. Scoop squash out of the center while still leaving a half inch border around the shell.
- Spoon black bean quinoa filling into butternut squash halves. Serve topped with cilantro and avocado.
I made this recipe for dinner tonight. It was very good and filling. I added the optional cayenne. We found the spicing just right. Served with a side salad. Give it a try!
Just made this! It was so YUM! Everyone loved it.
This was so so good!! It was my first time using butternut squash in a dish and I would totally make this meal once a week! My husband loved it as well! I used frozen quinoa and that worked great too and added green peppers. Thank you for sharing!
I’m so glad you and your husband enjoyed this recipe! It’s a great one for the fall and winter months!
This has become a go-to in our household – so delicious!
Hi Lisa! I’m so glad you love the recipe! It’s a fall staple for sure!
I know I can easily go out and buy quinoa, but I already have red lentils. Could that work?? Have you or had anyone tried that???
Sure! I think that would work! I haven’t tried it before, and it will likely have a different consistency, but black beans and lentils pair nicely.
OMG that squash is so delicious.
Awesome! I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe!
Both of our Thanksgiving dinners are hours away. Can this be made ahead and warmed in the oven?
I would make the filling ahead of time. And roast the squash. Then assemble and reheat in the oven.
This recipe is delish! If you want some extra heat…don’t be afraid to add taco seasoning and add even more spice to this, my family LOVES this dish!! Fresh garlic is a good addition!
Those additions sound amazing.
Stuffed butternut squash sounds like such a delicious dinner idea! I might have to give this a go.
It’s a must. Everyone in my family loved it, and they’re a difficult bunch!
Cc can’t digest corn so sautéed chopped red onion with olive oil and minced garlic before adding all other ingredients
Also added a few flakes of crushed red pepper
Delicious!!!
Sal D
I love this. The stuffed butternut squash is lovely and delicious and super filling. No need to add any carbs. Plus, pretty enough when having company over for dinner. 🙂
Yes, this dish is perfect for a dinner party. It looks really impressive but it’s super easy!
These are fantastic! I love a solid plant-based meal, and this one is going in the weekly rotation this season, for sure! The best part… leftover were fantastic, too! I took half a stuffed squash to work the next day and everyone was jealous.
I had leftovers for lunch too! Love when you can get two meals out of a dish!
This looks great. I think I am going to make this on Thanksgiving
This would make an excellent vegan Thanksgiving main dish! Enjoy!
I love these southwest flavors! A new family favorite in our household!
I’m so glad you love the flavors. My kids did too!
Tried this for the first time tonight and it was a success. I made a few changes – because of what I had on hand – and will try the original next. What is great is that the subs worked, telling me that this is versitile, and will fit in nicely even with substitutions – a winner! Used mixed vegies instead of just corn, used rice instead of quinoa, added a couple handsfull of fresh spinach – it all went well. Both my picky eaters said ‘thumbs up!’