Yesterday a lovely friend of Skinny Bitch needed some help to empty a container of Nappy Wipes for the company she works for and then do some warehouse work. Sounds easy enough? Boy was SB mistaken! 24000 packets of nappy wipes in 1333 boxes each weighing 8.5 kilos. Skinny Bitch and two others lifting every single one of them to stack into a warehouse miles high and if that wasn’t fun enough then had to unstuck mile high piles to take down to other warehouse where they were taped together making the weight now 17kilos and placed in more huge piles really to be posted out to customers. It was during this process that one of the lovely owners gave SB a homegrown beautiful pumpkin, so clearly She had plenty of time to imagine what She would do with that sweet little baby when She got home. Should I make soup? No it was far too pretty for that! Roast? No boring! How about a stuffed one? Yes! Perhaps chicken mince and garlic? No sick of chicken! Maybe quinoa , red onion and feta? yes that’s it! Now just tape these remaining 30 odd boxes and home She trot’s to cook! That was until after 8 hours of lifting and moving SB I did finally arrive home sunburnt, sore and could barely blink! So unfortunately the Pumpkin gave way to Latino Pasta and sauce and Pumpkin will have to wait until Skinny Bitch’s can move her arms again.
However as a footnote two days later SB did cook that Gorgeous pumpkin up and here’s the recipe!
Baked Pumpkin with Quinoa, Red onion and Feta cheese
Ingredients
1 pumpkin: Butternut or similar shape
2 cloves garlic chopped
3 tbs olive oil
1 red onion chopped
1 tsp nutmeg
1/2 cup Quinoa ( Cook as per instructions, it cooks same as rice so 1/2 cup Quinoa boil in 1 cup water for 15 mins, I use Tupperware rice cooker it’s easier.)
1/2 tbs African Spice ( I bought mine in Coles from Table of Plenty, but you can use Cajun or Nepalese)
1 tin organic diced tomatoes
1 tbs tomato paste
1/3 cup water
Salt and pepper
100g Persian Feta cheese
All pumpkin flesh diced
1/2 capsicum diced
1/2 Zucchini diced
1 cup baby spinach
1/2 cup corn kernels (use any or all of the vegetables or find your own)
Method
Preheat oven to 180C
Cut Pumpkin in half length ways and discard seeds. Remove half the flesh and put aside. (To scrape out use a spoon or I used a pizza cutter and then scooped out.)
Place both halves on tray and drizzle with half the olive oil, sprinkle with Nutmeg,salt and pepper and place in oven for 20 mins.
Meanwhile prepare filling.
Place rest of oil into frypan and heat on medium heat add onion and garlic and cook until soft (approx 2 mins) add African spice, stir 30 secs , add pumpkin flesh diced, capsicum, zucchini, corn, spinach, quinoa (cooked) and tinned tomatoes, tomato paste and water. Cook for 5 mins. Remove from stovetop.
Remove Pumpkin from oven and place on board, fill pumpkin cavity with quinoa mixture. Sprinkle withFeta cheese and bake for further 20. Mins.
Serve immediately …… Yum
