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An easy side dish that is perfect for the Fall season and Thanksgiving dinner! Maple Roasted Acorn Squash requires just 5 simple ingredients and is ready in under an hour.
Sometimes cooking for the holidays can be stressful, especially when you are in charge of all of the vegan options. That was me for the last 5 years and I have learned that making everything from scratch was just not possible if everything was so complicated/required a long list of ingredients.
What I look for now are simple recipes that take a short amount of time to make and/or require a short list of ingredients. This recipe is both of those! It requires just 5 ingredients and is ready in under an hour. The prep is super easy (just mix everything together in a bowl), toss the squash onto a baking sheet and roast it. You can work on other recipes while it bakes, too!
Acorn squash, maple syrup, pumpkin pie spice, brown sugar, and orange zest, that’s it! We also season ours with salt and pepper to taste as well. This recipe is the perfect sweet addition to a Thanksgiving table. Heck, I would even eat this for dessert because to me it’s sweet like candy!
Looking for other easy Thanksgiving or Fall dishes? Check out some of our other recipes below:
- The Best Vegan Mashed Potatoes
- Fall Vegetable Rice Pilaf
- No-Bake Pumpkin Chai Cheesecake
- The Easiest Thanksgiving Cranberry Sauce
- Mushroom Gravy
Make sure you tag us on Instagram @sweetsimplevegan and @consciouschris and hashtag #sweetsimplevegan if you recreate any of our recipes, we love to see your photos!
PrintMaple Roasted Acorn Squash (Easy + 5-Ingredients)
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings
Description
An easy side dish that is perfect for the Fall season and Thanksgiving dinner! This maple roasted acorn squash requires just 5 simple ingredients and is ready in under an hour.
Ingredients
- 1 medium acorn squash, halved and seeded*
- ¼ cup maple syrup, warmed
- 3 tablespoons organic light brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (or cinnamon)
- 1/2 orange, zested
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a large baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper. Set aside.
- Slice the acorn squash into about 1/2-inch pieces.
- In a large bowl, add the acorn squash pieces along with all of the remaining ingredients and toss until everything is well incorporated and uniform. Season with salt and pepper as desired.
- Place squash sliced onto a baking sheet. Brush or carefully drizzle over any remaining liquid.
- Place the squash into the oven and roast for 35 to 40 minutes, flipping halfway through. Remove from the oven and cool for 10 minutes. Enjoy!
Notes
- We cleaned the acorn squash seeds and roasted them to top the maple glazed squash with. It is not necessary but it is recommended to prevent waste and to add a layer of crunch to the dish! To roast them: Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Clean off the acorn squash seeds, removing any pulp that you can. Place the seeds onto the baking sheet and season them with salt and pepper as desired. Place into the oven for 18-25 minutes, or until golden brown. The time may vary depending on your oven and the size of the seeds. Cool before serving.
- This recipe would also work well with other fall squashes, such as butternut or kabocha.
- The nutrition facts do not take into consideration the addition of salt and pepper to taste.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Category: Appetizer, Side
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: Vegan, Oil-Free, Gluten-Free
Keywords: Appetizer, Side, Acorn Squash, Fall, Thanksgiving, Vegan, Oil-Free, Gluten-Free
Nutrition facts label provided by Nutri Fox.
Disclaimer: The nutritional information shown is an estimate provided by an online calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional’s advice. This page may contain affiliate links, which simply means that we earn a commission if you purchase through those links, but your price remains the same. Thank you for supporting Sweet Simple Vegan!
This is so delicious and smells amazing while cooking. I made it exactly as written. It was super easy and came out perfect. My 7 year old loves it too. I will be making this for our family Thanksgiving and can’t wait to share it. As an added bonus, it looks so pretty arranged and garnished like the photos. Thanks Jasmine and Chris!
Absolutely delicious marinade for the squash. I used cinnamon instead of pumpkin pie spice. The skin didn’t become edible though, maybe my squashes were old
★★★★
I am new to vegan recipes. I need a whole balance recipes to go with the side dishes.
Hi Gail, We have a seitan roast that this would pair well with! 🙂 You can find it here: https://sweetsimplevegan.com/2018/11/vegan-holiday-roast/