Home » Recipes » The Best Stuffed Pumpkin Recipe
By Taylor Stinson | 1 Comment | Posted: | Updated:
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Move over stuffed squash, Stuffed Pumpkins are here! They're topped with gruyere cheese and have a delicious homemade turkey sausage filling.
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Ingredients and substitutions
- Mini pumpkins – depending on the size of your pumpkins you might need to use more pumpkins. You could also make this recipe using squash.
- Olive oil – swap out for another neutral cooking oil such as avocado oil or canola oil.
- Yellow onion – white onion or shallots would also work.
- Garlic – freshly minced garlic is best but jarred minced garlic will work in a pinch.
- Kale – spinach or another dark leafy green can be used instead.
- Dry white wine – you can leave this out, I just find that it adds to the flavour.
- Salt & pepper – to taste.
- Gruyere cheese – Emmental, Jarlsberg or Swiss cheese would all be good in this recipe.
Turkey sausage
- Ground turkey – you could also make this sausage with ground chicken or pork.
- Fennel seeds – anise or dill seeds will provide a similar taste.
- Paprika – cayenne is a good substitute here but has a bit more of a kick.
- Onion powder – swap out for garlic powder if you don’t have any onion powder on hand.
- Salt & pepper – to taste.
How to make stuffed pumpkins
- Scrape out the pumpkin seeds.
- Bake the pumpkins.
- Sauté the onions.
- Make the turkey sausage.
- Add in the garlic, kale and wine.
- Stuff the pumpkins, bake and serve!
What to serve with stuffed pumpkins
These stuffed pumpkins are pretty filling on their own, but if you’re looking for side dish ideas, here are some good options:
- Side green salad
- Sweet potato salad
- Roasted veggies
- Brussels sprouts
- Mashed potatoes or baked potatoes
- Crusty bread
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you roast pumpkin?
Roasting pumpkins is easy! Slice the tops off of each of your mini pumpkins and scoop out the seeds (you can even use roast the pumpkin seeds as a yummy snack for later). Drizzle the pumpkin with olive oil, season with salt and pepper then bake on a parchment-covered baking sheet in the oven for 15 minutes at 375° Fahrenheit.
How do you cook the inside?
Since you’re scooping out the seeds of the pumpkin, you don’t need to worry about cooking the inside. It’ll get the perfect texture when you bake it in the oven for 15 minutes.
How do you add flavour?
The best way to add flavour to your stuffed pumpkins is with the delicious homemade turkey sausage and gruyere cheese. Trust me, you’re going to want to make this recipe every fall!
Storing and reheating
If you have any leftovers, store them in the fridge in an airtight glass container for 3 to 5 days. When you’re ready to reheat, I’d suggest warming them up in the oven for 5 to 10 minutes at 375° Fahrenheit. You can try microwaving them, but they’ll likely get all soggy.
You could also try storing the filling separately from the pumpkins. Reheat the turkey sausage mixture in a pan on the stovetop, stuff your pumpkins, top with cheese and bake.
Freezing the turkey sausage
I wouldn’t recommend freezing the stuffed pumpkins, but you can freeze the cooked turkey sausage for up to 3 months. Freeze it in airtight glass containers or freezer-safe Ziploc bags. When you’re ready to use your turkey sausage, let it defrost in the fridge overnight then reheat it in the microwave or in a pan on the stovetop.
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More fall pumpkin recipes
- Creamiest Pumpkin Mac and Cheese
- Pumpkin Curry Soup
- Pumpkin Spice Latte {Starbucks Copycat}
Meal prep tools for this recipe
- Grab someglass meal prep bowlsif you plan on turning these stuffed pumpkins into leftovers.
The Best Stuffed Pumpkin Recipe
Move over stuffed squash, Stuffed Pumpkins are here! They're topped with gruyere cheese and have a delicious homemade turkey sausage filling.
5 from 9 votes
Print Pin Rate
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Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 505kcal
Author: Taylor Stinson
Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes minutes
Total Time: 1 hour hour
Ingredients
- 4 mini pumpkins you may want to double this number if they're really small. Mine were 3 inches tall.
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 yellow onion sliced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 cup kale finely chopped
- 2 tbsp dry white wine optional
- Salt & pepper to taste
- 1 cup gruyere cheese grated
Turkey sausage
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 1 tbsp fennel seeds
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp each salt & pepper
Instructions
Preheat oven to 375 F. Slice the tops off each pumpkin and scrape out the seeds. Drizzle with a bit of olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste, then add to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat, then add onion and garlic, cooking for 2-3 minutes until softened. Add ground turkey, fennel seeds, paprika, onion powder and salt and pepper, cooking another 5 minutes.
Stir in kale and wine. Season with salt and pepper, cooking another 2 minutes, then remove from heat.
Stuff pumpkins with sausage mixture, then top with gruyere cheese. Bake for another 10 minutes, then serve and enjoy!
Notes
Try making the homemade sausage with ground chicken or pork instead of turkey.
Store the leftovers in the fridge for 3-5 days. Reheat in the oven for 5-10 minutes at 375 F.
Freeze the cooked turkey sausage for up to 3 months. Defrost in the fridge overnight then reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop.
Nutrition
Calories: 505kcal (25%)Carbohydrates: 50g (17%)Protein: 45g (90%)Fat: 18g (28%)Saturated Fat: 8g (50%)Polyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0.02gCholesterol: 99mg (33%)Sodium: 313mg (14%)Potassium: 2826mg (81%)Fiber: 5g (21%)Sugar: 20g (22%)Vitamin A: 60152IU (1203%)Vitamin C: 80mg (97%)Calcium: 553mg (55%)Iron: 7mg (39%)
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Created by Taylor Stinson
Hey there, my name's Taylor! I’m the founder of The Girl on Bloor, a food blog where I share healthy meal prep recipes for busy people. I'm a busy city girl living in downtown Toronto on (you guessed it!) Bloor Street. I've got 10 years experience meal prepping, along with a Master's degree in journalism, and you can find my work across the internet featured on publications such as Buzzfeed, HuffPost, Women's Health, Reader's Digest and more. I also run the awesome 5-Day Meal Prep Challenge, which is a free email course and Facebook group where I share my meal planning strategies and easy meal prep tips and recipes. Be sure to check out my free beginner’s guide to meal prep and follow me on Facebook, YouTube and Instagram to get my latest recipes and meal prep tips!
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Kat says
My whole family loved this! It was so fun to eat the whole pumpkin. Before this dinner, my kids didn’t realize you ate pumpkin like a squash. We also made this with vegan meat and dairy-free cheese so it was also 100% vegan. Thanks for the recipe! We will definitely make this one again!Reply
