Scintillating squash

Summertime calls for many things – icy cold treats, fresh fruit for breakfast, cold mint tea…all things fresh and light.  There is, however, one food very wintry in nature that I cannot resist even in summer: squash.

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It may be a hearty root vegetable but there is no denying its bright, golden-orange hue belongs in my notes for summer …

This vegetarian pasta has everything you’re looking for – fresh, delicious but also healthy and filling (but I promise you can still go swimming afterwards!). A little bit like a pasta primavera – a springtime vegetable medley – this pasta has it all. I sautéed  onion, celery, carrots, garlic and butternut squash – added plenty of white wine, fresh parsley and bay leaves. I finished it off with a hint of mace, lots of freshly cracked pepper and a touch of light cream. A perfect summer treat.

summer squash pasta

serves 4-6

1 tbsp olive oil

1/2 red onion, sliced finely

2 bay leaves

2 stalks celery, sliced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 large carrot, peeled and chopped

3/4 kg butternut squash (any pumpkin is fine), peeled and cut into sizeable pieces

1 1/2 cups white wine (I used pinot grigio because I was drinking it!)

1 cup peas

1/4 cup light cream

pinch of mace (use nutmeg if you don’t have mace)

sea salt

freshly cracked pepper

bunch of fresh parsley

500g wholemeal pasta 

Place a large pot on medium heat – wait a few minutes then when hot add oil, onion, bay, celery, garlic and carrot – sweat for 5 minutes. Add the squash and cook, stirring every minute or so for about 10 minutes – add white wine to deglaze the pot. Cook another 5 minutes or until squash is tender. At this point, place water in a large pot to boil for pasta. Salt the water, add pasta and cook until al dente (about 11-12 minutes for wholemeal pasta). To finish the sauce, add peas and cook 2 minutes, then add cream, mace, salt and pepper to taste. Finish the sauce with fresh parsley and dried chili if desired. I also added cheese – because I simply love it! Enjoy.

Eat your veggies

This morning I had my favourite combination for breakfast: a cup of hot coffee, a banana, and a delicious little muffin. Not a regular muffin but a pumpkin-carrot one with light orange glaze. OK – the glaze part doesn’t really sound like healthy breakfast but we are eating our veggies here, so no complaints!

The greatness of gourds

Australians love their pumpkins and so do I (see here and here).  This orangey gourd is a commonly used ingredient all year round; it’s in sandwiches, pastas, desserts and my favourite – soups!  Pumpkin's sweet and creamy flesh lends a great thick texture and earthy touch to any dish.

Each time I make pumpkin soup I change my recipe.  This time, I roasted the pumpkin to caramelize the sugars, adding another layer of flavour.  Additional ingredients included apples, garlic, rosemary and caraway seeds – a spice that comes from the parsley family and has a very distinct flavour that goes well with hearty foods.  I use caraway for a number of recipes (a delicious one is my rye crispbreads).

This soup is easy to make and much healthier and fresher than any store-bought variety.  It only takes 40 minutes to make and it’s perfect for lunch or dinner.  In the spirit of using everything, I cooked the pumpkin with the skin (yes, this is edible - and full of fibre!) and used the toasted seeds for a garnish.  For a final touch I added a little umami flavour with red miso paste.  The miso provided a salty, sweet and earthy taste and was an excellent replacement for the stock I didn’t have!

roasted pumpkin and apple soup

makes 8 serves or more

1 kg pumpkin

2 pink lady apples (or any other sweet apple)

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp sea salt and pinch of pepper

2 sprigs rosemary

1 tsp dried sage

3 cloves garlic – crushed

1 tsp caraway seeds

2 tbsp red miso paste

3 cups (approx 700ml) water

1 cup milk (any kind you like)

Preheat oven to 200 degrees C

Deseed pumpkin (reserve seeds) and apple and chop into small, even pieces.  In a bowl, add pumpkin, apple, olive oil, salt and pepper, rosemary, sage, garlic and caraway – mix well and place onto lined

baking sheet. 

Bake for 35 minutes or until pumpkin is soft.  Remove woody part of rosemary and garlic skins.  For ‘stock’ – in a bowl add 3 cups of boiled water to 2 tbsp miso paste and mix. Blend soup in portions –

adding 1 cup of miso water at a time to pumpkin and apple mix (this helps to ensure that you use the right amount of water – not too watery, not too thick).

Place blended soup into pot and add 1 cup of milk (again, this might need to be adjusted based on desired consistency).  Check for seasoning and add more salt if necessary.  I served my soups with some fresh basil and toasted pumpkin seeds. Yum!

Hello to halloumi

Do you know what halloumi is? If not, you are seriously missing out on this delectably delicious and ‘moorish’ treat. Halloumi is often referred to as the ‘vegetarian’s bacon’ (but it doesn’t taste like bacon!). It is a hard cheese traditionally made with goat's and sheep’s milk, but also often with cow’s milk. Its origins are Cypriot, Greek and Turkish and while I’ve combined it mostly with Middle Eastern flavours, here in Australia it is used in a variety of dishes.

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An uncomplicated way to eat halloumi is to grill or pan-fry it and serve it with fresh vegetables. I used ingredients like pumpkin, patty pan squash, red capsicum and red onion and dressed them in olive oil. Once they were cooked I added some fresh heirloom tomatoes to add colour and acidity.  I pan-fried halloumi separately and then added dried chili, a splash of balsamic vinegar and some agave syrup (you can also use honey). I added fresh herbs like thyme and basil and a squirt of lemon was the perfect finishing touch. Try it out and let me know how it goes! PS: you can find halloumi in most stores that stock Greek or Middle-Eastern foods.

Sidenote: seeing as I’m a big believer in food and education and a huge supporter of resources that help nourish our awareness of food and its natural origins, I wanted to give a shout-out to a new Wiki project called MyCityCuisine. I encourage foodies/food bloggers like yourself – who have a great deal of food knowledge and skills – to continue to share with projects like this.  

vegetable halloumi bake

serves 2/4 side serves

1/4  pumpkin (I used kent but you could use butternut squash as well), sliced

1/2 red capsicum, cut into pieces

1/2 red onion, sliced

4 patty pan squash, quartered

3-4 cloves garlic - crushed

2 tbsp olive oil

2 sprigs thyme

1 tsp dried sage

sea salt and cracked black pepper, to taste

500g heirloom tomatoes, halved

180g halloumi, sliced

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

2 tsp dark agave syrup *

1/2 lemon

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius

Place squash, capsicum, onion, squash, garlic and thyme in rectangular baking dish. Dress with oil, sea salt, pepper and sage and bake 15-20 minutes or until pumpkin is just tender. Add tomatoes and a bit more olive oil. Bake another 10 minutes or until tomatoes are just blistered.  Finish with a squeeze of lemon.

In the meantime, place a pan onto medium heat (don’t add oil), add sliced halloumi (make sure not to overcrowd pan so it doesn’t steam) and cook on one side 1-2 minutes until coloured well. Turn halloumi and cook other side. Take off heat, dress halloumi with balsamic vinegar, syrup and dried chili and then add to the baking dish to finish in oven for another 5 minutes. Take out and enjoy!

*agave syrup or agave nectar is a sweetener that dissolves easily and is sweeter than sugar so make sure to use less.  Use honey if you can’t find this product at health food stores.