The Vegducken: Butternut Squash Stuffed With Eggplant, Zucchini, and a Mushroom Lentil Stuffing

Meet the ultimate in holiday centerpieces: the vegducken. It looks too show-stoppingly awesome to eat without taking hundreds of photos but smells st mouthwateringly delicious that you might forget all about that part. Roasted butternut squash is stuffed with eggplant, zucchini, whole scallions, and layered with a savory, filling of sautéed mushrooms, red onion, scallions, red lentil, chickpeas, and gluten-free breadcrumbs that are puréed into crumbly deliciousness. Happy Thanksgiving.

The Vegducken: Butternut Squash Stuffed With Eggplant, Zucchini, and a Mushroom Lentil Stuffing [Vegan, Gluten-Free]

Ingredients

For the Vegducken:

• 1 butternut squash
• 1 zucchini
• 1 large eggplant and 3 whole scallions
• 1 large eggplant
• 3 whole scallions

For the Stuffing:

• 1 cup red onion, roughly chopped
• 3/4 cup scallions, roughly chopped
• 1 garlic clove, roughly minced
• 4 ounces sliced mushrooms
• 1 cup cooked black lentils
• 1 cup cooked chickpeas
• 1 cup red bell pepper, roughly chopped
• 2 tbsp fresh dill
• 3/4 cup gluten-free bread crumbs
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Preparation

To Prep:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Vertically halve the butternut squash, eggplant, and zucchini, and scrape out the insides of each, leaving the squash about 1/2-inch thick, and the other two vegetables about 1/3-inch thick.
3. Score the inside of each vegetable, to allow for easier cooking. Roast the butternut squash in the oven for 15 minutes, to soften a bit.

To Make the Stuffing:

1. Cook all of the ingredients up to the mushrooms in a pan until soft.
2. Place the stuffing and the remaining ingredients, except the bread crumbs, into a food processor and pulse until combined and uniform, but still slightly chunky. Transfer into a large bowl and mix in the bread crumbs.

To Make the Vegducken:

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
2. Now, all you have to do is layer. Follow this order: butternut squash, filling, eggplant, filling, zucchini, filling, and scallions.
3. Tie the vegducken shut with twine, wrap in foil, and place in an oven for 1 hour and45 minutes. Remove, cool and slice.

https://www.onegreenplanet.org/vegan-recipe/vegducken/