Pumpkin Dahl

Flavoursome and filling, great for a cold day to keep you warm.

Start by boiling the yellow lentils so that they are cooked by the time the rest of the curry is done
~ 1 cup of yellow lentils, cover with boiling water, simmer fr 20-25 minutes until tender
~ strain and set aside

Fry the following in a large pot on medium-high heat:
~ 1 onion, diced
~ 1 tsp ghee
~ 1 tsp coconut oil

After a few minutes, when the onion is soft, add in:
~ 1-2 garlic cloves, diced finely
~ ginger and tumeric root, diced finely (about a thumb sized piece of both)
~ 1/2 Kent pumpkin, diced into 1cm pieces

Cook for round 5 minutes, stirring often.  When the pumpkin starts to get soft around the edges, add in the spices:
~ 2 tsp garam masala
~ 1 tsp cumin
~ 1 tsp ground tumeric
~ 1/2 tsp chilli flakes
~ 1 tsp curry mix (equal parts mustard seeds, fenugreek & cumin seeds)
~ 1/2 tsp cinnamon
~ 3-5 curry leaves

Stir the mixture around for a couple of minutes until the spices become fragrant
Add the rest of the ingredients one at a time:
~ 1tsp fish sauce
~ 2 cups chicken stock
~ 200g coconut cream
~ juice from 1/4 of a lemon
~ pinch of salt (to taste)
~ 2 tbsp black or white sesame seeds

Bring to the boil and cook for a further 10 minutes on low heat, until the pumpkin is cooked but not too mushy
Lightly push down on a few areas of the curry with a potato masher so some pieces of the pumpkin are squashed down
Add the lentils and keep cooking for a further 5 minutes

“Lazy” Pumpkin Soup

As seen on MasterChef, being prepared by Matt Preston.  I have replaced his apples with carrots for the sweetness.

Take 1 kent pumpkin (or japanese) and cut it into 3cm wedges, removing the seeds
Place on a couple of baking trays and sprinkle with 1/2 tsp cinnamon and 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
Add to the baking tray:
~ 4 cloves of garlic (leave the skin on, it will fall off once roasted)
~ 2 carrots, peeled and cut into 3cm slices
~ 2 onions, peeled and cut into large chunks

Roast in an oven set to 180C for 30 mins, until pumpkin is soft to poke a fork in
Leave to cool slightly, while heating 1.5L chicken stock in a large pot
Turn the heat off on the stove once it has come to the boil and remove the pumpkin flesh from the skin with a knife – kind of like filleting a fish
Add the carrots, onions and (peeled) garlic cloves
Blend until smooth (season to taste)

The topping goes like this:
~ fry a few sage leaves in a tsp oil and set aside on a paper towel
~ fry a few bacons bits (I chopped 1 rasher finely)
~ add 2 tbsp pepitas and continue to fry on med heat
~ add 1/2 tsp brown sugar and keep stirring until the sugar disolves

Place on top of your soup, then add the sage leaves – DELICIOUS!

Thai Coconut Pumpkin Soup

Don’t be fooled by the title, I’ve made this soup using only 100ml of reduced fat coconut milk for the entire soup, which gives it a nice coconut flavour but not too creamy/rich.  Adapted from original recipe here

Prepare 1 pumpkin by peeling, de-seeding and cutting into 1cm cubes.  I have used both kent and butternut varieties for this recipe.

To start with, make a paste which will be the base of the soup.  Blend the following:
~ 1 brown onion, cut into chunks
~ 3 coriander root (the lower part of the stem from the fresh coriander leaf – I keep these in the freezer for times like this!)
~ thumb sized piece of tumeric root, finely diced (again kept in the freezer until needed – it thaws really fast if you don’t want to cut it frozen)
~ thumb sized piece of ginger, finely diced
~ 1 tsp ground coriander
~ 1 red chili, seeds kept in (I used a small, slim, asian chili)
~ 1 clove garlic
~ salt and pepper
~ dash of water (to help create the paste consistency)

Fry the above paste in a large pot for around 3 minutes, until the paste starts to reduce and become fragrant
Add in the pumpkin and fry off for a further 5 minutes, stirring to ensure it doesn’t burn on the bottom
Pour in 500-750ml boiling chicken or vege stock, cover and simmer for around 20 minutes
Once pumpkin starts to break down easily, blend with a stick blender
Season with extra salt / pepper if needed
Stir through 100ml light coconut milk and serve

Lamb Pilaf

This is a great one pan, one pot dish if you are feeding the masses! It is packed with flavour and perfect for a cold night.

~ 1/4 small pumpkin, peeled and diced
~ 2 cups chicken stock
~ few saffron threads
~ 1 brown onion, diced
~ 500g lamb mince
~ 1 cup jasmine or basmati rice
~ cinnamon quill
~ 1/2 cup sultanas
~ handful green beans, cut in half
~ 3 tomatoes, diced
~ 1/3 cup slivered almonds (or chopped whole ones)

To Serve:
~ greek yoghurt
~ fresh coriander leaf

Roast the pumpkin in the oven for about 20 minutes at 180c
Place the chicken stock and saffron in a medium saucepan/pot turn to medium/high
Heat a large fry pan and sauté the onions until soft
Add the mince and brown, breaking up as you go
(At this point you may like to drain the mixture as it can be quite an oily meat)
Add the cinnamon, rice and sultanas and continue to cook for a few minutes

Add in the chicken stock, which would have come to the boil by now along with the rice
Reduce heat to med/low and cover to cook for around 12 minutes (you may need to add a little more chicken stock/water if the mixture dries out before the rice is cooked)
Towards the end, add in the beans and stir through (they will braise a little in the heat)
Finally add the pumpkin and stir through, then the tomatoes.
Sprinkle over the almonds when in the serving dish.

Serve with greek yoghurt and fresh coriander leaf

Pumpkin & Sweet Potato Curry

I researched a few recipes and, restricted by the lack of ingredients in the cupboards, came up with this delicious hearty curry.  Would work well with chickpeas, carrot or coconut milk added as well.

Veges
Peel and chop the following vegetables into 2cm squares:
~ 1/4 pumpkin, I used Japanese but butternut would work as well
~ 1/2 medium golden sweet potato
~ 1/2 medium purple sweet potato
~ 1/2 medium white sweet potato (purple on the inside!)
~ 1/4 cauliflower, chopped into florets

Paste
Blend together the following:
~ 1/2 brown onion, roughly chopped
~ thumb sized piece of turmeric root, peeled
~ 1cm square piece of ginger, peeled
~ 1/2 tsp cumin
~ 1/2 tsp curry powder
~ 1 tsp red curry paste (optional)
~ 1/2 tsp shrimp paste (optional)
~ 1 small red chilli, chopped finely (adjust the size of the chilli and amount according to your taste)
~ dash of chicken stock (just to bind it into a paste – you will need more later)

Fry off the paste in a medium pot with a little olive oil on high heat for a few minutes
Reduce the heat and add a 400g tin of diced tomatoes
Cook for a further few minutes and then add the diced veges (except the cauliflower)
Stir around in the pot until the mixture covers the vegetables
Fill the tomato can 3/4 of the way with chicken stock and add about half of it to the pot
Reduce the heat to a light simmer and leave for about 15 minutes
Add the cauliflower after 15 minutes and stock, if required. It should be a thick paste surrounding the vegetables
Leave to simmer for the remaining 15 minutes, stirring occasionally

Serve with brown rice, coriander leaf for garnish and greek yoghurt, if desired.

Serves 3
Amount Per Serving (625g)
Calories 277 (Calories from Fat 17)
Total Fat 1.9g  (3% RDI)
Saturated Fat 0.6g (3% RDI)
Cholesterol 0mg
Sodium 810mg (34% RDI)
Total Carbohydrates 59.8g (20% RDI)
Dietary Fibre 16.1g (64% RDI)
Sugars 24.5g
Protein 9.9g
Vitamin A 1050% RDI
Vitamin C 126% RDI
Calcium 19% RDI
Iron 37% RDI

Stuffed Mini Pumpkins

These pumpkins were too cute, I had to try them when I saw them in the local Asian grocery store.  Recipe inspired by Scandi Foodie once again!

Stuffing:

~ 100g cooked quinoa

~ 1 carrot, grated
~ 1 spring onion, sliced finely
~ juice of 1/2 lemon (or lime)
~ tbsp chia seeds
~ flaked almonds or pine nuts
~ olive oil
~ salt and pepper
~ pinch of ground coriander/nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 180C
Combine the stuffing mixture in a bowl

Cut the tops off 4 mini pumpkins and carve out the seeds
Place the pumpkins (with their tops on) on a baking tray and spray with some olive oil.
Bake for about 10 minutes
Remove from the oven and let cool slightly.
Fill each with the stuffing mixture
Place the tops on the pumpkins
Return to the oven for 10-15 minutes

Roast Vegetable, Chickpea and Quinoa Salad

This is a quick, easy, substantial dish and leftovers are great for lunches.  I’ve taken the inspiration from Michelle Bridges’ Roast Vegetable and Chickpea salad with dill yoghurt dressing and added a few extra things!

Turn your oven on to 170 C and place the following in a roasting tray:

~ 1/2 pumpkin cut into 2cm cubes
~ 1/2 large sweet potato, cut into cubes
~ 1 red capsicum, de-seeded and cut into chunks
~ 1/2 red onion, cut into chunks
~ 2 medium courgettes, cut lengthways and then into thick slices
~ drizzle of olive oil
~ 1 tsp ground coriander
~ salt and pepper

Bake for about 20 minutes and then add 1 tin of chickpeas, drained, for the final 10 minutes

While the above is roasting place 1 cup of dry quinoa in a pot of boiling water and cook for 10 minutes
Drain and set aside until the rost vegetables are ready
Combine the vegetables and the quinoa in a bowl and add the juice of 1/2 a lime, a drizzle of olive oil, salt & pepper and chopped coriander leaf.

You could spice up the dish with some pinenuts, feta or rocket/baby spinach if you wanted to.

 

Some other dishes you may like:
~ Quinoa Cauliflower Salad with Pistachios and Cranberries
~ Stuffed Mushrooms
~ Zucchini Slice
~ Cauliflower Rice
~ Banana Coconut Bread
~ Coconut Chia Almond Blueberry Muffins