Sausage Rice Cranberry Mini Pumpkins (Print Version)

Mini pumpkins baked with sausage, rice, cranberries, and herbs for a cozy, flavorful autumn dish.

# Ingredients:

→ Pumpkins

01 - 8 to 10 mini pumpkins

→ Cooking Oil

02 - 2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil

→ Meat

03 - 1 pound ground pork sausage

→ Vegetables

04 - 3/4 cup chopped sweet onion
05 - 1 cup roughly chopped crimini mushrooms
06 - 1 cup chopped kale leaves

→ Liquid

07 - 1/2 cup apple cider

→ Nuts and Seeds

08 - 1 cup chopped raw pecans

→ Seasonings

09 - 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
10 - 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
11 - Kosher salt, to taste
12 - Fresh ground black pepper, to taste

→ Fruits

13 - 1 cup dried cranberries

→ Grains

14 - 1 package Seeds of Change Quinoa Brown and Red Rice (about 8.5 ounces; microwavable)

→ Cheese

15 - 1 cup shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

# Steps:

01 - Preheat the oven to 400°F (204°C). Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Slice the tops off each mini pumpkin and remove seeds. Brush pumpkins and tops with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
02 - Arrange pumpkins with their tops on the lined baking sheet. Roast in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes until just tender. Remove from the oven and set aside.
03 - Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add pork sausage and cook thoroughly, breaking up with a spatula. Season with salt and pepper. Drain excess fat and set the sausage aside.
04 - Using the same pan, cook onions and mushrooms until softened. Pour in apple cider and deglaze the pan by scraping up any browned bits. Add chopped pecans, nutmeg, and thyme, and cook until the liquid reduces slightly, about 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
05 - Microwave the Seeds of Change Quinoa Brown and Red Rice package according to manufacturer’s instructions.
06 - In a large bowl, mix together cooked sausage, sautéed onion and mushrooms, dried cranberries, heated quinoa and rice blend, chopped kale, and 3/4 cup shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.
07 - Reduce oven temperature to 350°F (177°C). Place roasted pumpkin bottoms in a large cast-iron pan. Spoon the filling into each pumpkin, mounding over the top as needed. Sprinkle remaining Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese over the stuffed pumpkins.
08 - Bake stuffed pumpkins uncovered for 15 to 20 minutes or until the pumpkin flesh is fully tender and stuffing is heated through.
09 - Serve hot. Return roasted pumpkin tops onto each stuffed pumpkin before presenting.

# Notes:

01 - Pumpkin flesh is edible; instruct guests to scoop out pumpkin with the filling for best flavor.
02 - Prepare the filling in advance and assemble just before final baking for ease of entertaining.

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