I've put this recipe under my Halloween umbrella simply because I've served it in a bowl made of pumpkin! Halloween may be for kids...full of spooky, gimmicky ideas (Click HERE for my Sour Apple Screamers),....but this salad is a celebration of the vibrant, Autumnal colours in the seasonal foods available at the moment. It's also delicious and filling-perfect if you have to accompany your little ones on their 'Trick or Treat' escapades-you need to keep your energy levels up!
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Seriously though, I think this one's a real show-stopper. I love a warm salad in the cold, damp weather; Citrusy salad leaves, topped with warm, roasted butternut squash and chewy garlic...creamy, crumbly feta and soft, filling grains. A crunch of mild red onion and juicy pomegranate to top it all.
Its a feast for the eyes and very satisfying for the stomach!
You could serve this as a starter for a dinner party, or a robust and yummy main meal any time of the week.
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My recipe makes:
2 generous portions for 7pp/approx.440kcal
per portion,
or
4 small portions for 4pp/approx.220kcal
per portion.
All I ask if you are making more than one portion, is that you apportion the quinoa and the feta evenly into separate, weighed individual portions before assembling the salad, as these are the ingredients containing the propoints. It's so important to measure these ingredients accurately and not have a "that'll do" approach, as an added propoint here and there will affect your weightloss or maintenance efforts.
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You Will Need : (2 large or 4 small portions)
1 medium pumpkin
100g Quinoa/Bulgar Wheat
(I used this lovely mixed pack)
1 teaspoon low salt stock powder
1 medium butternut squash
8 cloves garlic, skin left on
100g low fat feta cheese
Fresh thyme
Fresh basil
Salad leaves
(I used a mix containing beetroot)
Juice of 1 lime
1 mild red onion
1 pomegranate
Paprika
Black pepper
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Weigh out the quinoa or grain of your choice. I loved this mix because the grains are tiny, delicate and mixed colours. Most of these grains work out to 1pp per 10g dry weight, but check on the packaging of the grain you choose. Cous-cous would also work well in this recipe.
Cook in boiling water with 1 teaspoon stock powder for added flavour. This particular variety takes 12 minutes to cook. Leave to drain.
Although I serve this in pumpkin 'bowls', I don't personally like pumpkin as much as butternut squash-I find the texture very 'mushy' even when roasted.
So...peel then cut the butternut squash into small cubes. Mix with the unpeeled garlic cloves and some fresh thyme. Spray with some Frylight Sunflower oil before popping on a baking tray in a preheated oven for 50 mins-1 hour at 200 degrees centigrade.
While the butternut squash is roasting, prepare the pumpkin 'bowls'.
Cut the pumpkin in half. Scoop out and discard the seeds. With a metal spoon, scoop out most of the flesh of the pumpkin, leaving about 1cm in the shell to form a bowl.
Pop the flesh in a bowl, cover and store in the fridge. (I have a lovely SMASH & GRAB recipe using this, coming up later in the week).
Fill each pumpkin 'bowl' with salad leaves, then squeeze fresh lime juice over them.
In separate mixing bowls, combine each portion of quinoa with the warm, roasted butternut squash. Open the roasted garlic cloves to reveal garlic 'toffee' - chewy, delicious roasted garlic. Just pull apart or chop the garlic and dot it into the salad mixture.
Apportion the feta cheese and crumble roughly into the salad mixture. Add diced red onion. Season with black pepper.
Heap the warm salad generously into the salad leaf-lined pumpkin 'bowls'. Sprinkle with chopped, fresh herbs, pomegranate seeds and paprika.
Finally, scatter a few more salad leaves around the edge of the bowl to make an attractive and appetising presentation.
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