Pumpkin and Spinach Salad
This is so easy and delicious. Works perfect as a stand-alone meal or as a side dish. I love it in a wrap with the Middle Eastern Beetroot Salad recipe.
Keeps wonderfully in the fridge for 4-5 days. So easy to make and creates almost no mess.
Ingredients:
1/2 Butternut Pumpkin
3-4 Handfuls Baby Spinach
1 Handful Pitted Black Olives
50-100g Goats Feta *for Vegan try Cashew Cream
Macadamia Oil * Macadamia Oil is my go-to cooking oil - tastes great, healthy and has a high flash point so it does burn when sautéing onion, etc.
Teaspoon of Ground Cumin *to taste
Pinch of Dried Chill Flakes *to taste
Method
Preheat oven to 180.
Dice the Butternut Pumpkin into bite size cubes and place on a sheet of baking in an oven tray. Dress the pumpkin with the macadamia oil, ground cumin and chill flakes. Bake the pumpkin for 20-25mins until cooked, tossing half-way through.
While the pumpkin is baking, place the baby spinach in a large salad bowl and crumble the goats feta over the top.
Cut the pitted black olives into halves or quarters depending on their size.
When the pumpkin is cooked place it hot onto the spinach and goat feta. This will start to melt the goats feta. Add the black olives and toss. The melted feta mixes this the cumin and chill to create the dressing- a kind of like a self-sourcing salad.
Middle Eastern Beetroot Salad
I love this dish- it’s so easy to make, supper delicious, keeps happily in the fridge for 4-5 days and is wonderful for any “bring a plate” gatherings (they will happen again- I promise).
Ingredients
3-4 Beetroots
100g Cous Cous
1/2 Pomegranate
1-2 handful Pitted Black Olives (quartered)
1-2 handful Sultanas
1-2 handful Papitas (Pumpkin Seed)
1-2 handful Walnuts (chopped)
1-2 handful Pistachio (chopped)
1/2 Orange (Juiced)
Macadamia Oil
Aged Balsamic
Method
Preheat oven to 190.
Individually wrap the whole beetroots in alfoil and oven bake till cooked (75-90min). *This step can be done the day before.
Into a large salad bowl add the pomegranate, black olives, papitas, sultanas, walnuts, pistachios and orange juice.
Bring kettle to the boil. Put the 100g cous cous into a large mixing bowl, add 150ml boiling water and a little macadamia oil. Cover and rest for 6min. Then toss the cous cous with a fork till light and fluffy.
Add all the ingredients from the fist bowl to the cous cous and mix well.
Dress with a little aged balsamic to taste.