recipe by Jeannette Lara
courtesy of vpk by Maharishi Ayurveda

This has become one of our favorite winter recipes. It's rich and fulfilling, and will make your house smell absolutely fantastic! I've included this as a vegetarian recipe in the Main Dish section, but it could also be a side dish for a meat-based entree if desired.

Serves 4 1 large butternut squash (or winter squash of your choice) 2 tablespoons sesame oil or ghee, split into two 1-tbsp portions, plus a little more for brushing 1 cup wild rice (or rice of your choice) 1/2 inch minced ginger root 1/2 cup diced celery 1/2 cup shredded carrots 1/2 cup diced almonds (or nut of your choice) 1/2 cup raisins 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1/4 teaspoon crushed black peppercorns 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves 1/4 cup pomegranate seeds

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Split the butternut squash in half, lightly brush with sesame oil or ghee, and bake face down for 45 minutes to 1 hour.

While the squash bakes, start cooking the rice. Rinse the rice with water. Boil the water. Add the rice and turn the heat down to low and cover. Simmer for 20 minutes, until rice is fluffy and water is almost evaporated. Remove from heat and let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes. Lightly fluff with a fork.

While the rice cooks, warm one tablespoon of sesame oil or ghee on medium heat and stir in ginger root, celery, carrots, nuts, and raisins.

Once the mix is soft, coat with the ground herbs. Remove from the heat and stir into the cooked rice.

When the squash is done baking scoop out the centers and keep divided (set the seeds aside for later dry roasting or discard).

Divide the remaining tablespoon of oil or ghee and using a fork, stir into each half of the squash until mashed. Return the mash to the squash shell.

Divide the rice mixture into two and place on each half of the squash.

Garnish with pomegranate seeds!