Quinoa & Butternut Squash-Stuffed Avocados

Apr 7, 2011 by lanashabit

Now its quinoa and butternut squash-stuffed avocados!

You will have to blame the store for my recent bulk purchase of avocados. I’m a gal who can’t turn down a sale. Unless of course the sale is on the ridiculously overpriced and absurd-looking Urban Satchel Louis Vuitton Bag. I have my limits people.

Purse or no purse, I was delighted with how this recipe turned out. I used leftover butternut squash, but it can easily be omitted if you don’t have any on hand. You will have little avocado boats within 25 minutes if you let the quinoa cook while you prep the avocados. It’s a smooth-sailing-kind-of recipe.

Quinoa & Butternut Squash-Stuffed Avocados

Yield: 4 avocado boats

2 avocados
1 cup quinoa, uncooked
2 cups vegetable stock (or water)
1/2 cup onion, finely diced
1/2 cup butternut squash, finely diced
1 T. EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)
1 t. dried parsley
juice of half a lemon
pumpkin seeds for garnish
S & P to taste

Bring stock to a boil. Add the quinoa, onions and parsley. Stir to combine then reduce heat to low and cover the pot. Allow to simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the liquid is absorbed.
Cut avocados in half, remove the pit and cut into a checkered pattern. Use a spoon to scoop out the avocado pieces without puncturing the skins. Set the skin halves aside.
In a small bowl, combine the lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. Add in the butternut squash and avocado to marinate for the remaining time the quinoa is cooking.
Add dressing mixture to quinoa and toss to combine.
Scoop the quinoa filling into the avocado skins. Garnish with pumpkin seeds and parsley.

*There might be some left over quinoa stuffing depending on the size of your avocados. Use fresh parsley if you have it.