Delicious cheesy pie using home-grown winter squash
Using winter squash in recipes can be tricky, especially if you’re not used to cooking with them. However, Burpee Europe’s squash Early Acorn has been used to great effect here by chef Valerie Hamelin.
Early Acorn, as its name suggests, is an early variety and saves on space. This bush-type hybrid can be planted just 90cm apart. Productive plants bear five large, dark-green fruits. The orange-yellow flesh is sweet and nutty and has a smooth texture.
This recipe has been created for Burpee Europe by Chef Valerie Hamelin. Of course, you could use similar varieties. Learn more about growing squashes and patty pans on my how-to page.
Winter Squash and Stilton Pie – Ingredients
- 1 winter squash – Early Acorn Hybrid (depends on the size)
- Olive oil
- Sprig of thyme
- 1 small bag of spinach leaves
- 1 onion, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 small packet of smoked lardons
- 1 packet filo pastry
- Butter, melted for each layer of filo
- 1 small pot low fat crème fraiche
- 50g Stilton cheese
- Salt and pepper
Method
- Cut the squash in half and season with olive oil, salt, pepper and thyme. Roast in the oven for 25 minutes at 180°C or until the flesh feels cooked and soft.
- Whilst the squash is cooking, heat the olive oil in a pan and sweat off the diced onions and garlic. Add the spinach and cook until wilted, drain and set aside and cool down.
- In a hot frying pan, place the lardons and cook until golden brown and crispy, then drain on a kitchen roll to remove excess fat.
- Spoon out the flesh of the squash, separate some crushed down and some into pieces.
- Place the cooled spinach into a bowl, add the crème fraiche, the crushed winter squash and salt and pepper, and mix well. Set aside.
- Crumb the Stilton.
- Cut the filo pastry into large strips and cut into 10cm x 10cm squares.
- To assemble the pie, use a 7cm muffin tin tray. Place 3 buttered filo pastry squares on top of each other. Place the 1st one on a worktop, then add the second one to the opposite quarter, and the 3rd square on top like the 1st one.
- Then press down the filo pastry into the moulds and add the spinach mix on the bottom and top with the winter squash pieces and the crumbed Stilton.
- Bake in the oven at 190°C for 20 minutes or until the filo is golden brown and the cheese is melted.
Winter Squash and Stilton Pie in Filo Pastry updated 2025
