Vegetarian Roasted Acorn Squash with Pinto Beans for Two

WW Recipe of the Day: Oven-Roasted Acorn Squash with Pinto Beans and Red Chile Sauce

When I lived in Denver, I came across an amazing vegetarian stuffed squash dish at a local New Mexican restaurant named Julia Blackbirds. The mouthwatering dish contained slow roasted spiced acorn squash stuffed with beans topped with red chile sauce.

It was so tasty I went home and tried my best to recreate it.

Acorn squash topped with red chili sauce and pintos

This recipe is what I came up with. And it's become my go-to dish for fall and winter entertaining.

It's simple and comes together quickly. Yet friends think I must have been in the kitchen for hours.

It may sound like a strange combination, but the flavors really work. Even hardened carnivores will feel satisfied when you serve this dish.

How Can You Make Your Own Pumpkin Pie Spice?

Pumpkin pie spice is simply a blend of cinnamon, ginger, cloves and nutmeg. You can usually find it in the spice aisle of most stores or you can make your own by combining: ½ teaspoon cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon ginger, ⅛ teaspoon each of nutmeg and allspice or cloves.

How Many Calories and WW Points in this Roasted Squash with Red Chile Pinto Beans?

According to my calculations, each serving has 202 calories and:

5 *SmartPoints (Green plan)
2 *SmartPoints (Blue plan)
2 *SmartPoints (Purple plan)
5 *PointsPlus (Old plan)

To see your WW PersonalPoints for this recipe and track it in the WW app or site, Click here!

Acorn Squash is a Zero Points food on Weight Watchers.

How to Make Acorn Squash with Pinto Beans

Step 1: Gather and prepare all ingredients. You'll need 1 cup of cooked pinto beans, which I like to prepare in my Instant Pot (affiliate link).

Preparing to make acorn squash with pintos

Step 2: Preheat oven to 325F degrees.

Step 3: Cut the acorn squash in half vertically. Scoop out the seeds.

Cutting and removing seeds from squash

Step 4: Rub 1 teaspoon of olive oil on the inside of each half of squash.

Adding oil and pumpkin spice to squash

Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice on each half. Rub the spice to cover the inside of squash.

Acorn squash rubbed with olive oil and pumpkin spice

Step 5: Line a baking sheet (affiliate link) with parchment or use a silpat (affiliate link) baking mat. Put the squash cut side down on the baking sheet.

Ready to bake the squash

Step 6: Roast squash for 45 minutes or until soft.

Oven-roasted acorn squash

Step 7: Remove from the oven and plate the squash. Add pinto beans to center of each piece of squash. Top with enchilada sauce and cheese, if using.

Oven-Roasted Acorn Squash with Pintos and Red Chili Sauce

Pinto Bean Stuffed Roasted Acorn Squash Recipe Notes

• You can raise the temperature to 400F and reduce the cook time for the squash to 20-25 minutes, if you need to speed things up.
• To add some crunch, toss chopped pecans in with the pumpkin pie spice.
• Use mild, medium or hot enchilada sauce.
• Not a fan of red, use green enchilada sauce.
• Keep pinto beans and enchilada sauce warm in crockpots, so the meal is ready to serve at any time.
• Replace pinto beans with black beans.
• Add some color with chopped cilantro.
• Top with diced jalapeños.
• Skip the cheese to make it vegan.

Roasted squash with pinto beans and red chili sauce

How to Serve Pintos with Roasted Squash

• Serve this squash dish with Pork Chili Verde.
• Great alone or alongside a simple green salad.

Ways to Use Leftover Roasted Acorn Squash

• Add some chicken broth and make a soup. Top with fresh avocado.
• Warm any leftover and serve for breakfast with your favorite egg dish.

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5 from 5 votes

Roasted Acorn Squash with Pinto Beans for Two

This recipe proves you don’t need meat to serve a fabulous dinner. This hearty vegetarian dish will convince any meat-lover to go veggie.

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time45 mins

Total Time55 mins

Servings (adjustable): 2

Calories: 202

Author: Brenda Garrison | Simple Nourished Living

Ingredients

• ▢ 1 acorn squash
• ▢ 1 cup cooked pinto beans
• ▢ ½ cup red enchilada sauce
• ▢ 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
• ▢ 2 teaspoons olive oil
• ▢ 2 tablespoons cotija, or feta, cheese (optional)

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 325F degrees.
• Cut the acorn squash in half vertically. Scoop out the seeds.
• Rub 1 teaspoon of olive oil on the inside of each half of squash. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice on each half. Rub the spice to cover the inside of squash.
• Line a baking sheet with parchment or use a silpat. Put the squash cut side down on the prepared baking sheet.
• Roast squash for 45 minutes or until soft.
• Remove from the oven and plate the squash. Add pinto beans to center of each piece of squash. Top with enchilada sauce and cheese, if using.

Recipe Notes

• You can raise the temperature to 400F and reduce the cook time for the squash to 20-25 minutes, if you need to speed things up.
• To add some crunch, toss chopped pecans in with the pumpkin pie spice.
• Use mild, medium or hot enchilada sauce.
• Not a fan of red, use green enchilada sauce.
• Keep pinto beans and enchilada sauce warm in crockpots, so the meal is ready to serve at any time.
• Replace pinto beans with black beans.
• Add some color with chopped cilantro.
• Top with diced jalapeños.
• Skip the cheese to make it vegan.

Serving size: ½ squash filled with ½ cup beans + ¼ cup sauce

Click here to see your WW PersonalPoints for this recipe and track it in the WW app or site.

5 *SmartPoints (Green plan)

2 *SmartPoints (Blue plan)

2 *SmartPoints (Purple plan)

5 *PointsPlus (Old plan)

Nutrition Facts

Roasted Acorn Squash with Pinto Beans for Two

Amount Per Serving (1 /2 squash filled with ½ cup beans + ¼ cup sauce)

Calories 202 Calories from Fat 54

% Daily Value*

Fat 6g9%

Carbohydrates 35.4g12%

Fiber 5.9g24%

Protein 5g10%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Southwestern

Keyword: roasted squash and beans, squash beans chili sauce

Did you make this recipe?Mention @simplenourishedliving on Instagram and tag #simplenourishedliving - we love to see your creations!

Recipe source: Inspired by dish from Julia Blackbird's Restaurant in Denver, CO

*Points® calculated by WW. *PointsPlus® and SmartPoints® calculated by Simple Nourished Living; Not endorsed by Weight Watchers International, Inc. All recipe ingredients except optional items included in determining nutritional estimates. SmartPoints® values calculated WITHOUT each plan's ZeroPoint Foods (Green plan, Blue plan, Purple plan) using the WW Recipe Builder.

If you like this Roasted Acorn Squash, you might also like:

• Slow Cooker Squash Apple Soup
• Easy Asian Spaghetti Squash Salad
• Healthy Slow Cooker Squash
• Asian Baked Kabocha Squash

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