Fall

Tuna Salad Stuffed Acorn Squash

October  4, 2022
4
3 Ratings
  • Serves 2
Author Notes

It's time to elevate the classic tuna salad so that a few slices of white bread just don't seem good enough anymore. Technically you could eat the tuna salad however you want, but I think it goes perfectly with the warm, slightly sweet, roasted acorn squash. Perfect for a picnic lunch for two. —Taylor Ayral

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • The Tuna Salad
  • 5 ounces Packaged Tuna
  • 1 tablespoon Mayonaise
  • 2 tablespoons Greek Yogurt
  • 1 teaspoon Dijon Mustard
  • 2 teaspoons Fresh Lemon Juice
  • 1 teaspoon Sesame Oil (not toasted)
  • 1/4 teaspoon Kosher Salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon Garam Masala
  • 1/4 cup Celery, sliced thin
  • 2 tablespoons Green Onion
  • 3 tablespoons Slivered Almonds, divided
  • The Squash
  • 1 Medium Acorn Squash
  • 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
  • 1/4 teaspoon Garam Masala
  • 1/8 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper (optional)
  • Kosher Salt
Directions
  1. The Tuna Salad
  2. Toast the almonds in a dry pan, stirring often, until fragrant and just turning golden brown.
  3. Drain the tuna if necessary, then use a fork to break it up into bite-size pieces.
  4. In a medium bowl, combine the mayonnaise, greek yogurt, mustard, lemon juice, sesame oil, salt, pepper, and garam masala. Stir to combine.
  5. Gently fold in the tuna, dried cranberries, sliced celery, and 2 tbsp of slivered almonds
  6. This can be done ahead, and stored in the refrigerator until ready to serve. If you're serving this with the squash still warm, I suggest the tuna salad being cold.
  1. The Squash
  2. Preheat oven to 400 F
  3. Lightly grease a baking sheet.
  4. Using a sturdy knife and a mallet, half the acorn squash longitudinally (from top to bottom). This can be tough, as acorn squash are hard and dense, so be careful. Scoop out the seeds and do with them what you will. Once you have two halves, cut a small disk from the outside so that the squash can sit stable on the baking sheet with the opening up.
  5. Using a sharp paring knife, score the inside of both squash halves every 3/4", in a criss-cross pattern.
  6. Brush the inside of both halves with olive oil. Generously sprinkle with the salt, garam masala, and cayenne (if desired).
  7. Roast until fork tender, 45-60 minutes, depending on the size of your squash.
  8. Allow to rest for 10 minutes until cool enough to eat. Fill each half squash with an equal amount of tuna salad. Sprinkle over the remaining 1 tbsp of slivered almonds, and enjoy while the squash is warm and the tuna salad is cold.

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