Festival Recipe
Roast wedges of pumpkin or squash with feta and parsley pesto
Recipe by Rachel Allen
- Serves4-6
Ingredients
- For the parsley pesto you will need:
- 25g (1oz) parsley leaves, big stalks removed
- 25g (1oz) freshly grated parmesan cheese
- 25 g (1oz) nuts such as almonds, walnuts, hazlenuts or cashews
- 2 cloves of garlic , crushed
- 75ml (3fl.oz) extra virgin olive oil , plus extra for the top
You will need:
- 1 butternut squash or a quarter of a medium-sized pumpkin
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
To serve you will need:
- 4 handfuls of really good salad leaves such as rocket or watercress
- 3 teaspoons extra virgin olive or pumpkin seed oil
- 1 teaspoon of red wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar
- 125g feta cheese, broken into roughly 2cm chunks
- 25g nuts such as almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts or cashews, roughly chopped and toasted in a hot pan for a minute or two till golden
Method
- First make the parsley pesto. Put the parsley, the grated cheese, the nuts and the garlic all into a food processor, and whizz up. Add the olive oil and a good pinch of salt and taste. If not using straight away, pour into a sterilised jar, cover with 1 cm of olive oil and store in the fridge. It keeps for about two months.
- Preheat the oven to 220’C /450’F/ Gas 7.
- Peel the pumpkin or squash using a sharp knife, cut in half lengthways and discard the seeds. Cut in to wedges just less than 1cm at the thickest part. Place in a wide bowl and drizzle with the olive oil and season with a good pinch of sea salt and the pepper. Toss with your hands then tip into a roasting tin or baking tray, making sure to pour in all the oil and seasoning. Spread out into a single layer and roast in the oven for 20 minutes or until tender and a little golden around the edges. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly.
- To serve, dress the salad leaves in the olive oil or pumpkin seed oil, whichever you’re using, and the Arrange on a plate and place the cooked pumpkin or squash wedges on top, then scatter with the feta cheese and the toasted nuts and serve.
