Stuffed Acorn Squash

I came across this recipe on the homepage of spud.ca and of course had to make it that night .. I have made a few modifications as I found the original recipe too bland. Very filling and soooo good  Perfect for a fall dinner party. Pictures to come soon 

INGREDIENTS
3 good-sized acorn squash
4 to 6 tablespoons butter or margarine
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium carrot, diced
1 celery stalk, strings removed, and diced
1 cup cubed squash (pumpkin, acorn, butternut, hubbard, or kabocha)
1/2 cup mushrooms, diced
1/2 cup red pepper, diced
3 to 4 cups stale French,country bread, or whole grain bread. torn into bite-sized pieces
2 eggs, lightly beaten (optional)
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley ( I use flat leaf parsley which worked really well )
1/4 cup chopped fresh sage can substitute 3 – 4 tbsp ground sage
2 tsp black pepper
2 cups (or more) vegetable broth, salted
1 cup (or more) hot apple cider or sweet white wine (optional)
1/2 lb of ground turkey, pork or beef (optional)
(Try substituting 2 cups of chopped kale for the cubed squash, and corn bread for the stale French bread)

Preheat the oven to 350F.

Wash the whole acorn squash and cut them into halves lengthwise. (This will make six bowls.) Remove the seeds and stringy stuff and set aside the cleaned acorn halves.

In a heavy skillet over medium heat, brown the ground pork until no longer pink. Remove meat from pan and heat the butter or margarine. Add the garlic, onion, carrot, celery, cubed squash, and mushrooms. Saute this mixture over medium-high heat until vegetables are tender.

In a large bowl, mix the bread pieces, eggs (these give great texture to the final product), parsley, sage, and chopped nuts, if desired.

Add the bread mixture to the sauteed vegetables and stir to mix thoroughly, then add the vegetable broth (salted to taste). Continue to mix, squishing with your hands if you like, and adding broth as necessary, until the stuffing is very moist and soft.

Mound the stuffing into the squash halves, place the stuffed squash bowls on a large baking sheet, cover with foil, and bake until the squash is tender and the stuffing is done, about 1 1/4 hour. Or you could place stuffed squash in a baking dish into which you have poured a cup or more of hot apple cider or sweet white wine, leave halves uncoverd, and baste every 15 minutes with pan juices unitl done.

Serve hot.