Squash Attack!

Honestly, this was probably my most treacherous adventure so far.  There were a few points when I actually thought that it was feasible that I would impale myself or chop off a finger, maybe even a limb.  But where there's a will, there's a way.  That squash had no chance.  My foe of choice was a hubbard squash that my parents so thoughtfully gave me from their CSA.  If you know anything about a hubbard squash, you know it's a monster.  Many people simply use this type of squash for decoration.  Now I know why.  The skin is very, very tough and the squash weighs about 20 lbs.  You cannot cut these with a knife or meat cleaver.  You cannot simply crack them open by whacking them repeatedly with a hammer or knife.  However, using the pronged end of a hammer does work wonders.  To initially break through the skin, I starting swinging away with hammer prongs, mumbling a mantra, "Momentum is on you side", while closing my eyes and hoping for the best.  After making my way around the circumference of the squash I jammed a chef's knife into the belly of the beast and started pretty much just sawing away until the squash finally split into two halves.  My kitchen was utterly soiled and I had enough squash in my hair to snack on for days.  I highly recommend using any other squash, even a pumpkin, rather than a hubbard.  Just alter amount of ingredients accordingly. The principles are still the same.  The following recipe will be what I used for one half of the hubbard, which should be roughly equivalent to one large squash or a pumpkin.

Time
Prep Time: 30 min
Bake Time: 1 hr 30 min
Ready In: 2 hr


Servings
Roughly 6 people


Ingredients 
1 large squash.  Take your pick.
1 box of chicken or vegetable broth if you prefer to be vegetarian
1 box of stuffing, pepperidge farm and stove top whole wheat is what I use
2 large apples, diced
1 large red onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, diced
1/2 package of fresh cranberries if you find it, if not no worries, is still great without it.  Roughly 3 cups
1 cup of chopped walnuts
1 tablespoon of ground cinnamon
1/2 tablespoon ground allspice
1/4 tablespoon crushed red pepper
Salt and Pepper to taste

Procedures 
1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. Attack squash.  After splitting, scoop out insides and discard or save seeds to bake at later time.
3.  Season both halves of squash with cinnamon, allspice, crushed red pepper, little bit of salt and pepper.  Vary cinnamon, allspice, and red pepper according to taste.
4. Get out 2 baking dishes, one for each half of squash, pour roughly 1-1/2 cups of broth into dish then place squash face-down in dish.
5. Bake for approximately one hour.
*While Squash is baking, make the stuffing*
6.  Saute onion, garlic, apple, and walnuts together (add walnuts a few minutes after adding the rest).
7.  Add cranberries and stuffing.
8.  Add rest of broth, approximately 2-2 1/2 cups.  Add a little bit of water if needed.
9.  Season as desired.  Saute only for a few minutes and remove from heat.
10.  Place stuffing in baked squash and re-bake for 20-30 min or until slightly browned.
11.  Serve and enjoy!