Weekly Recipe!

Roasted Stuffed Butternut Squash

Ingredients (serves 2):

1 butternut squash, halved                                1 carrot, finely cubed

1 white onion, chopped                                      2 garlic cloves, 1 minced, 1 thinly sliced

2 handfuls of spinach                                         1 sprig thyme, leaves only

200-250g Quorn Bacon lardons                         small handful parsley, roughly chopped

100g mature cheddar cheese, grated                1tbsp Rapeseed oil

200g Cup mushrooms or Chestnut mushrooms, chopped into 8    

salt & pepper       

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 190⁰C/170⁰C Fan/Gas Mark 5.

2. Halve the butternut squash, scoop out the seeds and any stringy flesh. Place in a roasting tin.

3. In a small bowl combine the oil, minced garlic, parsley and thyme, then brush over the butternut and place in the oven for 45 minutes.

4. Towards the end of the butternut squash cooking, grab a deep frying pan or wok, add some oil and place on a medium heat. Then, add the onion and Quorn lardons and cook for 4-5 minutes, until the lardons start to brown. Add the mushrooms, garlic, spinach and carrot to the pan and mix it all. Fry until cooked. Season to taste.

5. Remove the butternut squash from the oven and transfer to an aluminium foil covered baking tray.

6. Turn on the grill. Fill the butternut squash with the filling and then top with cheddar cheese and cracked black pepper. Pop under the grill until the cheese has melted and is starting to brown.

7. Remove from the grill and enjoy with a mixed salad.

Toms Top Tips:

This is one of my favourite spring time dishes to cook because it’s quick and easy to make and deliciously flavoursome. I recommend enjoying this dish with a mixture of rocket, baby spinach, little gem lettuce, cucumber and sliced radish. I find it’s a lovely balance of flavours and textures which complement the butternut squash.