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Baking the squash twice allows you to use some of the pulp in the stuffing, while the rest becomes soft and succulent in the shell.
3 butternut squash, each about 2 to 2 and one-half pounds
3 tablespoons butter
3/4 cup minced onion
3 stalks celery, minced
3 tablespoons minced sage
3 tablespoons minced Italian parsley
5 large slices pain au levain or other coarse-crumbed bread, crusts removed and torn or cut into small pieces
6 dried peach halves, finely chopped
8 dried plums (prunes) finely chopped
6 dried pears, finely chopped
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup vegetable broth
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper.
Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F.
Place the whole butternut squash on a baking sheet and bake until little resistance is offered when pierced with a toothpick, about one hour.
Remove and let cool to room temperature, about 1 hour. (The squash can also be baked the day before and left at room temperature, covered.)
Preheat oven again to 350 degrees F.
Carefully cut the squash lengthwise. One side will have the stem end, the other not. With a metal spoon, scrape out the seeds and discard. Scrape the pulp, which will still offer a little resistance, out to within one-half inch of the edge. Chop the pulp and set aside.
In a frying pan over medium high heat, melt the butter. When it foams, add the onions and celery and sauté until translucent, about 2 minutes. Add the sage, parsley, torn bread, peaches, prunes, pears, walnuts, chopped squash pulp, broth, salt and pepper.
Reduce the heat to low and simmer to make a moist stuffing, about 5 minutes. If too dry, add more broth. Taste and add more salt and pepper if desired.
Fill the cavities of the squash with stuffing, mounding it. Cover each squash with aluminum foil, pressing it to fit snugly. Put the squash on a baking sheet and bake until the meat of the squash shell is tender when pierced with the tines of a fork, about 1 hour.
Remove the foil and serve hot.
Serves 6
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