Acorn Squash With Dried Fruit And Granola Compote Recipes

GRANOLA CRUSTED ACORN SQUASH

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375°F. Spray 3-quart casserole with cooking spray.
• Cut each squash in half; scoop out seeds. Cut squash into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Arrange slices, overlapping slightly, in casserole.
• In small bowl, mix melted butter and rosemary. In another small bowl, mix granola and 1 tablespoon of the butter mixture. Brush squash slices with remaining butter mixture. Sprinkle with parsley, salt, pepper and granola mixture.
• Cover; bake 30 to 40 minutes or until squash is tender when pierced with fork. Uncover; bake 5 to 10 minutes longer or until lightly browned.

DRIED FRUIT COMPOTE

Steps:

• In a small saucepan, simmer together port wine and sugar over medium-high heat until the sugar has dissolved. Add dried fruit and dried cranberries. Bring mixture to a boil and reduce to a simmer for 5 minutes. Set aside to cool.
• Serve over frozen yogurt and garnish with toasted slivered almonds.

SWEET DRIED FRUIT COMPOTE

Steps:

• Combine 2 cups of the water with the dried fruit in a large bowl. Let soak for 1 hour.
• In a small saucepan, combine the remaining 2 cups of water, orange juice, sugar, and lemon zest over medium-high heat. Add the fruit and the soaking liquid to the pan. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the cinnamon and clove. Simmer 40 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the fruit has softened and the mixture has thickened. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool. Serve warm or cold.
• Cook's Note: If using store bought dried fruit, chop the pieces into 1/2-inch chunks and simmer the mixture an additional 15 to 20 minutes.

DRIED FRUIT COMPOTE

Steps:

• Simmer the fruit in water to cover for about 15 to 20 minutes, or until soft. Remove to a bowl and reduce liquid in saucepan to half a cup.
• Add the orange and lemon peel, honey and orange juice. Stir until honey has melted, correct sweetening and pour the mixture over the fruit. Leave at room temperature.
• Just before serving, sprinkle the fruit with the almonds. Serve the creme fraiche separately.

WILD RICE STUFFED ACORN SQUASH

Steps:

• Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease 2 baking pans, and place the cleaned-out squash, cut sides down, into the pans. Bake in the preheated oven until barely soft to the touch, about 25 minutes.
• Make the stuffing mix as instructed on the package, and set aside.
• Melt the butter over medium heat in a saucepan, and cook and stir the onion and garlic until the onion is translucent, about 10 minutes. Stir in the mushrooms, and cook and stir until they give up their juice, about 5 more minutes. Add the rice mix and sage, and cook and stir the rice and vegetables until the vegetables begin to brown, about 5 minutes. Pour in the vegetable stock, stir to combine, cover, and reduce heat. Simmer the rice mixture until tender, 30 to 40 minutes.
• Lightly mix the cooked rice mixture with the stuffing in a bowl, and pile the mixture into the centers of the squash without packing it. Return the stuffed squash to the oven and bake until the squash are tender and the stuffing is hot, about 15 more minutes.

FRUIT-STUFFED ACORN SQUASH

Steps:

• Cut squash in half; discard seeds. Place squash cut side down in an ungreased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. Add 1 in. of hot water to the pan. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 30 minutes. , Drain water from pan; turn squash cut side up. Sprinkle with salt. Combine the remaining ingredients; spoon into squash. Bake 40-50 minutes longer or until squash is tender.

MOROCCAN-STYLE STUFFED ACORN SQUASH

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Arrange squash halves cut side down on a baking sheet. Bake 30 minutes, or until tender. Dissolve the sugar in the melted butter. Brush squash with the butter mixture, and keep squash warm while preparing the stuffing.
• Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the garlic, celery, and carrots, and cook 5 minutes. Mix in the garbanzo beans and raisins. Season with cumin, salt, and pepper, and continue to cook and stir until vegetables are tender.
• Pour the chicken broth into the skillet, and mix in the couscous. Cover skillet, and turn off heat. Allow couscous to absorb liquid for 5 minutes. Stuff squash halves with the skillet mixture to serve.

FRESH FRUIT COMPOTE WITH HOME-MADE GRANOLA

Steps:

• To make the granola, preheat the oven to 180C/Fan 160C/Gas 4. Line a large baking tray with baking parchment.
• Pour the apple juice into a medium saucepan and bring to the boil. Continue boiling until the liquid has reduced by 2/3, and is syrupy. It's really important to get this bit right, as the apple syrup needs to be thick enough to lightly coat the oats.
• Add the oats and almonds to the pan with the apple syrup and stir until well combined. Tip everything on to the baking tray and spread out thinly. Bake in the centre of the oven for 15 minutes.
• Take the tray out of the oven and scatter the dried fruit over the top. Turn and mix everything with a spatula or spoon and put the tray back in the oven for another 5 minutes or until the oats are crisp and lightly golden. Remove from the oven and leave to cool on the tray, then tip the granola into an airtight tin or jar. This mixture is best eaten within 2 weeks.
• To make the compote, preheat the oven to 190C/Fan 170C/Gas 5. Peel the apples and cut them into quarters. Remove the cores and slice the apples thinly. Put the apples with the plums and half the sugar in a shallow ovenproof dish - a lasagne dish is ideal. Cover loosely with a sheet of foil and bake for 30 minutes.
• Take the dish out of the oven and add the whole berry fruits to the dish. Sprinkle with the remaining sugar and toss lightly together. Cover with foil and return to the oven for a further 15 minutes or until the fruit is soft and juicy but still holding its shape - it will continue to cook once you've taken it out of the oven. Leave the compote to cool, then tip it into a bowl and cover with cling film. It will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days.
• Serve the compote in bowls, topped with a couple of spoonfuls of the granola and some low-fat yoghurt if you like.

DRIED FRUIT COMPOTE

Steps:

• Combine all ingredients in heavy medium saucepan. Bring to simmer over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Reduce heat to medium. Simmer until fruit is tender and juices are reduced to very thick syrup, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes.

OLD-FASHIONED FRUIT COMPOTE

Steps:

• Drain pineapple, peaches and oranges, reserving the juices; set drained fruit aside. In a Dutch oven, combine fruit juice, dried fruits, lemon zest strips and cinnamon stick. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer until dried fruit is tender, about 30 minutes. Add reserved canned fruit and cherries; heat just until warmed through. Serve warm or at room temperature.

ACORN SQUASH WITH DRIED FRUIT AND GRANOLA COMPOTE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease a 9 X 13" pan.
• Take the squash and microwave it for a few minutes until the skin can easily chip off with a little pressure from your finger nail- this will make it easier to cut in half. Let cool before you cut it in half! (5-10 minutes).
• Cut in half and scoop out center to make a nice 'bowl' for the compote. But leave enough squash to eat! (Some people may end up scooping out too much, and then they'll just be eating the compote --).
• Take each half the acorn squash- halved and centers scooped out. Place face side up in lightly greased pan.
• In a separate bowl, mix all ingredients RESERVING THE BUTTER to be cut up and placed on top. Make sure you mix thoroughly- separate equally amongst the 2 halves. Brush the 'rim' of the squash with additional melted butter, honey, or maple syrup.
• Cover with foil (lightly tent) and bake 20 minutes, uncover and bake an additional 20-30 minutes or until squash is tender when speared with a fork.