Acorn Squash With Bacon, Apple And Swiss - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 (12 -16 ounce) acorn squash
3 slices bacon
1/2 cup apple, chopped, peeled (I used golden delicious, I'm sure any would work well)
1/4 cup onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 teaspoon dried sage
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon dried thyme
ground pepper
1 cup seasoned stuffing mix (I used herbed, cubed bread stuffing)
1/4 - 1/2 cup water, depending on your preference for stuffing consistency
1/4 cup swiss cheese, shredded (I used deli slices that I finely cubed)
Optional topping
1 tablespoon toasted breadcrumb (optional)
1/8 teaspoon olive oil (optional)
1 tablespoon parsley, chopped (optional)
1 teaspoon green onion, sliced (optional)

Preparation

Halve squash.
Remove seeds and pulp.
Place squash, cut side down, in a shallow baking dish.
Add water.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
In a medium saute or sauce pan over medium heat, cook bacon until some fat is rendered (3 min).
Add onion and saute/sweat for 3 minutes-ish.
Add sage, rosemary,thyme, and pepper (or anything else you'd like).
Add apple and saute/sweat for 2 minutes-ish.
Add garlic and saute/sweat for 2 minutes-ish.
Drain if needed.
Stir in stuffing mix and water.
Once stuffing mix is moist, stir in cheese.
Spoon stuffing into prepared squash.
Cover with loosely with foil.
Bake about 20 minutes more.
I removed foil; topped with optional topping (below) and baked for last five minutes.
Optional topping:
Mix bread crumbs and olive oil.
Mix in parsley and green onions.