Pumpkin Columns with Apple Vinaigrette

Yes Pumpkin season had started. It's not that I have waited for it nervously, but glazing at the shelf in the supermarket I couldn't stop myself and got one. Especially after I've been sick for at least one week with stomach-digest-problems and worst such horribly stomachpain. 

First pumpkin for this year..... and probably not the last one. Pumpkins are healthy and with lots of vitamins and not much calories. 

My first "normal" dish since a week. (The past week I've only eaten rusk dipping in vegetable broth and rice slime. Breakfast helds millet gruel lightly sweetend). 

So you see I've been graving for normal food and VEGETABLES AND FRUITS. But I wanted to keep it low, not overstressing my stomach too much for first. 

Anyway, guess you never appreciate a dish in from of you more than being after sick. And everytime I remind myself that there are so many people out there in the world not having the opportunity to choose what to eat. So be allways gracefull what you got in front of you on your plate......

LOVE, PEACE AND HAPPINESS TO EVERONE

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Pumpkin Columns with Apple Vinaigrette



4 Portions

Ingredients:
1 Hokkaido-Kürbis (1 kg)
1 El Öl
rough Seasalt
some grounded pepper
1  red  Apple
4 Tbsp. Lemonjuice
2 Tbsp. Agavesauce
Salt
3  spring onions
2 Tbsp. Pumpkin seed oil or normal oil

Direction:

Halve the pumpkin, core, and cut into 8-10 columns. Brush the columns with oil, place on a baking tray with baking paper and season with sea salt and pepper. Put in the preheated oven up to 200 C° on the 2nd track from the bottom and bake 25 to 30 minutes.

From the Apple remove core housing, cut into slices, then into cubes. Mix 4 tbsp lemon juice, Apple juice, water, salt, pepper. Brush spring onion, and cut white and light green in discs and stir in.

When done remove the Pumpkin columns out of the oven. Into the vinaigrette stir in pumpkin seed oil and serve with the pumpkin columns. Or sprinkle the vinaigrette right over the columns and serve it then.

Pumpkin-Pesto / Dip / Spread

Today was a day with 3 stop overs. First stop was at the dentist - everything ok. Second stop was at the supermarket where I buyed a Hokkaido-Pumpkin and stuff I needed for my cooking-adventure. And of course the third stop ended up in the kitchen

As I love vegetable dip/spread/pesto's I wanted to make one out of Pumpkin. I was so exausted about starting with it and of course about the result. I have to say ahead - it is delicious!!!!!!!
I hardly couldn't stop myself from digging in my fingers.

The pesto isn't oily - which I like more and it's creamy and therefore usuable for many kind of variation, such as a dip, spread or even as a sauce for your next pastadish.

Well, let's see how long it will last till I ate everything. Probably not very long. It won't be the last time I've done it!

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Pumpkin-Pesto / Dip / Spread

 

 



 makes about 2 big and 3 small glasses

 

Ingredients:

1 Pumpkin (in my case Hokkaido about 1300kg)

2 knob garlic, chopped

1 onion, chopped

100 ml water

2 Tbsp. nutritional yeast

2 Tbsp. sunflower seeds (or pine seeds)

6-8 dried tomatoes (I used the ones in oil)

50 ml olive oil

3 Tbsp. chopped chives or parsely

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. fresh grounded pepper

 

Direction:

Halve the pumpkin and pull the core away, then cut into pieces. Preheat a pan and add one Tbsp. oil, add the onion and garlic and shortly roast. Then add the chopped Pumpking, stirr and shortly roast then add the water and cook at middle heat till soft. When done put into a bowl and set outside or in the refrigerator to let cool down.

 

Meanwhile chopp the tomatoes and together with the left ingredients combine in a blender. Process well through then add (when cooled down) the pumpkin and blend all together. Season with more salt or pepper if needed.

 

Put the pesto / dip / spread in well-sealing glasses and keep refrigerated. It will be good for about 2 weeks.

 

Tastes great on bread , Pasta or as a dip!

 

 

(of course I first had to neatly clean the bowl with my finger before cleaning..)

Pumpkin Puree with Lentils and Mushrooms

My first pumpkin this year - yeah finally. I had to buy one, cause the one plant having in my garden came out to be a carnish-pumpkin. This happend cause I picked some babyplants from my sisters compost. I was pretty upsad, but maybe next year with the now saved cores.

Anyway I was so excited when I bought a Hokkaido, first thinking about making a soup, but that was too daily. I wanted something different. Then I reminded myself having a great pumpkin-puree last year at the vegetarian/vegan restaurant (which was sooo good).
Well over a year I couldn't quite remember every ingredients it got, but for now I tried a to cook it at least similar.

Thought I've used other spices and herbs the result was very good. I couldn't get my spoon out of it before serving!

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Pumpkin Puree with Lentils and Mushrooms



4 Portions

Ingredients:

Pumpkin puree:

1 pumpkin, for example Hokkaido or butternut, approx. 1 kg.

Ghee

Sea salt

125 g black lentils  or green Puy lentils

150 g shiitake mushrooms or mushroom mixture with Portobello, Oyster, shiitake mushrooms, cleaned

Freshly cut parsley sauce:

1/2 of bunch of smooth-leaved parsley (leaves)

3 Tablespoons nuts and seeds, such as walnuts, pine nuts, almonds

3-4 TBSP freshly grated vegan Parmesan cheese

6 Tablespoons olive oil

Sea salt

black pepper

Direction:

Pumpkin puree:

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees. Cut Pumpkin in half lengthwise, remove the seeds with a spoon. Brush Pumpkin halves with ghee, add salt. With the cut surface give down on a plate with parchment paper.

Bake 30 to 40 minutes in the middle of the oven. The time longer or shorter depending on the variety: once the skin is lightly browned and bubbles (great meat), remove. Allow to cool slightly. Solve the pumpkin flesh with a spoon out of the shell.

Cook Lentils up with 2.5 dl of water. Simmer covered at small heat 20 to 30 minutes until they are soft. Drain, set aside later.

Parsley sauce:

Put the ingredients in a mortar including olive oil, crush roughly the ingredients. Season with salt and pepper. Then quickly stir fry mushrooms in ghee over high heat and season lightly.

Dressers:

Put the pumpkin puree on a preheated plates, place lens,  sprinkle with sauce and cover with mushrooms.

Tip:
This is a recipe for the whole year. In the summer, you can make the dish with Zucchini, spaghetti squash and Patissons (with the mandolin in spaghettiform cut and stir fry in a pan).

vegan pumpkin hummus

Pumpkin Hummus

 

 

Ingredients:

500 g of Hokkaido

4 TBSP olive oil

2 Cloves of garlic

1 Lemon

1 Tsp cumin

1 EL tahini

2 TBSP sour cream

Salt, pepper, sugar

1 TBSP pumpkin seeds

little pumpkin seed oil

Cut pumpkin into small pieces and with salt, sugar and olive oil marinade and cook over medium heat in a saucepan for soft. Roast the cumin in a skillet and unprovided. Finely chopped garlic and grate the peel of a lemon.

1 EL tahini made from glass or quickly, by about Sesame toasts 5 TL and processed with some salt and oil into a paste and then with toasted sesame oil and lemon juice tastes from them something.

Garlic, cumin, tahini, a portion of lemon juice - Bowl, and the sour cream to the pumpkin type and fine puree. With pepper, salt, sugar, cumin and lemon juice to taste to taste, garnish with pumpkin seeds and pumpkin seed oil and serve for dipping with bread.

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Snowman time

Wow, it's been snowing the hole afternoon. So beautiful, seems like the world stands still, all so calm and the watch the snow falling so great.
As I came home I was all over white and a little wet, but it's a different being wet from rain or from snow.

The hole afternoon I stayed inside at my "maybe new job". I had a look inside to their work and worked also a little bit, but mostly just watched and asked.
It would be a different kind of work - what I mean, a different direction, still medicine but a child doctor is not the same as internal doctor or general doctor.

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 Spiced Butternut Squash Soup

 * Prep Time: 10-15 minutes

* Cook Time: 1 hour

* Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp soy butter*
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp ginger root, minced
• 1 leek, white parts, diced
• 1 carrot, diced
• 2 small to medium butternut squash, peeled, cubed
• 2 russet potatoes, peeled, cubed
• 2 bay leaves
• 6 cups vegetable broth
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp all spice
• 1/8 tsp ground clove
• 1/8 tsp ground marjoram
• 1/8 tsp ground fennel
• 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/2 cup white wine*
• 1 cup non-dairy milk*
• vegan sour cream, to top, to taste*

* Recipe:

1. In a large pot, melt the soy butter and add the onions. Cook until translucent.
2. Next, add the garlic, ginger, and leeks. Stir occasionally for about 10 minutes.
3. Add the carrot, butternut squash, potatoes, bay leaves, and vegetable broth. Cook for about 30 minutes or until the root vegetables are soft.
4. Add the spices, wine, and milk. Cook for another 5 minutes.
5. In batches, puree the soup. Enjoy with a dollop of vegan sour cream.

In the picture, it's not quite as orange-ish as it should have been because I only used one butternut squash, therefore I upped it to two. I also cut the cayenne in this because I found it a bit too spicy for me. The bread in the picture is homemade whole wheat rolls made.

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 Baked Squash and Pesto Gratin

 Prep time:  15 mins

Cook time:  45 mins

Total time:  1 hour

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 2 large yellow summer squash (or several small summer squash)
• 2 medium tomatoes
• ⅓ cup basil pesto
• 1 cup gruyere, shredded
• salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Grease the bottom and sides of a baking dish with pesto.
3. Slice the squash and tomatoes into ¼ inch rounds.
4. Add tomatoes and squash to baking dish in a single layer, slightly overlapping.
5. Brush the tops of the vegetables with pesto. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
6. Top with shredded gruyere.
7. Bake for 45 minutes or until the juices are bubbling and the cheese has started to brown. Broil for a couple of minutes if you want the cheese crispier.

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