Baked Squash with Apples

I had a recipe swap with some of my friends a few months ago.  I blogged about the stir-fry with peanut sauce recipe my friend Wendy gave me at the swap.  This is another recipe from that night.  It came from my friend Krista.  I always trust recipes from her because she is a great cook and she has two toddlers, so her recipes are pretty easy to make.  The original recipe calls for acorn squash, but I had some butternut squash from our produce box, so I used that.  If you use butternut squash, you will need to carve out a larger "bowl" for stuffing the squash.  We are at the end of the season for winter squash, so it may be a while before I get to make this again...but I will make it quite a bit when squash is back in season.  We all loved it!

Baked Squash with Apples
Adapted from The Joy Kitchen

1 butternut or 2 acorn squash, cut in half, seeds removed
3 large apples, cored and diced
1/4 cup raisins
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup orange juice

1) Preheat oven to 325. Grease a baking pan large enough to hold the squash.  Add 1/4 inch of water to the pan.
2) Bake squash, cut side down, for 45 minutes.
3) While the squash in baking, mix apples, raisins, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a large bowl.
4) Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add the apple and raisin mixture and cook, stirring frequently for 5 minutes.
5) Add the orange juice and simmer, stirring often, until the fruit is tender, about 8 minutes.
6) Remove the squash from the oven. Pour off the water from the pan and turn the squash cut side up. Fill with the apple mixture. Bake until the squash is tender, about 15 minutes more.