These adorable stuffed pumpkins are packed with mushrooms, spinach, and cheese - then baked to a golden perfection. This makes the perfect vegetarian main dish for Thanksgiving!
Last year, I came upon a recipe for a baked pumpkin stuffed with bread, bacon, and cheese on Pinterest. I immediately made a mental note because I knew that, with a little bit of tweaking (and a lot less bacon), it would be a perfect vegetarian main dish for a holiday dinner.
And with Thanksgiving (and Christmas) right around the corner, it seemed like the perfect time to tackle this whole stuffed pumpkin thing.
I went to the grocery store to find one large pumpkin to stuff, but when I saw these mini pumpkins, I couldn't resist. Personal stuffed pumpkins!
If you can't find them locally or if, like my husband, you're not a fan of baked pumpkin in savory dishes, you can easily substitute acorn squash or sweet dumpling squash instead.
Since the original inspiration recipe was heavy on bacon and short on veggies, I fixed that by adding sautéed mushrooms and baby spinach as well.
We almost always have a bag or two of Baby Spinach in the fridge for throwing into smoothies, stirring into soups, and fixing quick lunchtime salads.
Tips & Tricks
The best thing about making these stuffed pumpkins for the holidays is that they're easy. Crazy easy, in fact.
Prepare the pumpkins and make the veggies for the filling in advance, so before dinner, all you have to do is stir together the filling, pop it into the pumpkins, and let them bake.
While they're baking, you can devote your attention to your side dishes or pour yourself a glass of wine and join your guests. Perfection!
You can cut the pumpkins into wedges and eat them that way or scoop the insides out. I preferred scraping the pumpkin into the filling so I get the flavor of both in each bite.
Pumpkin rind can vary in toughness. As a rule, it's edible, but I've gotten some pumpkins (like these) where the skin was a little bit tougher and I had to discard it. Use your best judgment!
If you love these stuffed pumpkins, be sure to check out these other savory pumpkin recipes and all my favorite pumpkin desserts too.
And if you're looking for more holiday-worthy recipes, be sure to check out our brand new Vegan Thanksgiving and Vegan Christmas cookbooks!
📖 Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 sugar pie pumpkins, about 1 pound each
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 2 shallots, large, thinly sliced
- 8 ounces white mushrooms, sliced
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 5 oz baby spinach
- 1 French baguette, stale, cubed (mine was about 6.5 ounces)
- ⅔ cup Swiss cheese, shredded
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ cup heavy cream
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF.
- Use a sharp knife to remove the tops from each pumpkin. Scoop out the insides and discard them (or save the seeds for roasting!). Rub salt and pepper on the inside of the pumpkins.
- Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the sliced shallots and cook them for about 5 minutes, until they're softened. Add the mushrooms and garlic and cook about 5 minutes more, or until the mushrooms are browned. Stir in the spinach and continue to cook until it wilts. Remove from heat and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Transfer the veggie mixture to a large bowl. Add the bread, cheese, nutmeg, and cream and stir until combined. Divide the the filling into the pumpkins, then place the top back onto them. Put the pumpkins on a baking sheet or baking dish that's been sprayed with oil or lined with parchment paper.
- Bake the pumpkins for about an hour, then remove the tops and bake for 20-30 minutes more, or until the filling is browned and crispy on top and the pumpkins are easily pierced with a knife. Replace caps and serve.
Kelly Little says
What a fabulous idea! As a wheat-free family, we substituted the bread out for quinoa and it was absolutely DELICIOUS!!
Carrie K. Esposito says
I wonder about quinoa with spinach, mushroom and cheese. How much quinoa should I add into 3 pound pumpkin? I'm planning to make those this Thursday with my hubby.
Alissa says
I think quinoa would be delicious in this, but without trying it myself, I can't say how much. Your best bet would be to make a big batch and save any leftovers for another use. 🙂
PJ says
Thank you for informing us that you were sponsored by Earthbound. Your honestly is appreciated and may even incline me to use whatever product you may have been sponsored by 🙂
Agness of Run Agness Run says
This seems so interesting and delicious, Kiersten! I've never tried anything similar but it seem fun!
Trisha @ Salty Side Dish says
I have never tried a stuffed pumpkin recipe. I bet it would taste delicious because I love pumpkin. I think I will have to whip up a batch of these for a friend coming over next week.
vedant says
Thank you so much for the making this site because its so good for the food.
Jennifer R says
Fabulous
I’m doing this Tuesday for my neighborhood dinner
Thank you ?
Cynthia Lyons says
Hi Kiersten ! Happy Thanksgiving ?
I made these last night with a couple substitutions, Delicious !! Thank you so much for the idea ! I bought mini acorn squash, used bread crumbs instead of cubed bread, and added fresh thyme, and dried cumin. I also added 1/4 cup of water under the squash. I read that somewhere and it cuts the cooking time down some, and the squash is nice and tender. We all loved it. Thanks again ? Yum yum
Jules W says
This is delicious! Not a fan of bread, so I replaced with some puy lentils which worked out great. Used one large Queen Squash. Very tasty and will definitely make again.