Description:
Recipes from Winter 2022 issue of True Natural Health
Ingredients:
For the butternut pumpkin
1 butternut pumpkin
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
For the stuffing
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 carrots peeled and chopped
2 stalks of celery chopped
1 brown onion chopped
2 cloves garlic minced
1 cup wild rice
2 cups vegetable stock
½ cup walnuts chopped
½ cup dried cranberries
1 teaspoon fresh sage chopped
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon thyme
Method
Preheat your oven to 180 C – 360 F.
Cut the pumpkin in half lengthwise. Scoop out and discard the seeds, then put both halves on a baking tray, cut side up.
Drizzle the olive oil on top of each half and rub around to coat.
Bake for 60 to 75 minutes until the pumpkin is cooked and fork tender.
Let it cool enough so that you can handle it.
Scoop out the flesh in the centre of both pumpkin halves, leaving about a 2.5 cm border all around.
For the stuffing
In a large pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat.
Sauté the carrots, celery, onion and garlic until softened.
Add the wild rice and stock to the pan, give it a stir, then cover and bring to a simmer.
Cook for approximately 20 minutes, until the rice has cooked and fully absorbed the stock.
Add in the walnuts, dried cranberries, sage, thyme, salt and pepper.
When ready, add in the scooped out and chopped pumpkin flesh.
Stir well to combine.
To stuff the pumpkin
Pack in as much of the stuffing into both sides of the pumpkin as you can.
Pick up one pumpkin half and flip it on top of the other.
Use kitchen string to tie up the pumpkin in 3 or 4 places holding it together.
When you are ready to bake, lightly brush the top with more olive oil.
Bake for 20 to 35 minutes until hot all the way through.
Season the top with cracked pepper and a sprinkle of chopped sage or other seasonal herbs.
Slice carefully and serve hot, you may like to serve this with vegan gravy.
