Pumpkin Everyday – Roast Pumpkin & Cauliflower Salad with Lentils

After my weekend of deep frying I felt the need for something a bit healthier so I turned back to my slowly diminishing pumpkin stash and made this wholesome but delicious salad.  You will note the presence of my vegetable of the moment – YAY for cauliflower!  Perhaps I should call this post Cauliflower Everyday although I only have a few left in the garden so may have to reign my eating in a bit.

Roast Pumpkin & Cauliflower Salad with Lentils (Serves 2 as a lunch dish)

• 1 cup puy lentils
• Either 1 carrot, a stick of celery, bunch of parsley, sprigs of thyme and water or about 1.5 cups vegetable stock.
• 1 tomato diced
• 250g diced (about 1cm cubes) pumpkin
• Half a medium cauliflower – seperated into florets
• Olive oil for roasting
• Feta for crumbling over the top

Dressing

• 3 tblspns olive oil
• Juice and finely grated rind of a lemon.
• 1/2 tsp dijon mustard
• 2 cups chopped mixed herbs (I used a mixture of parsley, mint, coriander, dill, chervil and spring onion)

Heat the oven to 200.  Coat the pumpkin and cauliflower in olive oil and roast until cooked.

Meanwhile cook the lentils and tomato in either the stock or cover with water and add the carrot, celery, parsley and thyme for flavouring.

To make the dressing whizz all the dressing ingredients in a food processor.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Once the lentils are cooked drain them and leave to cool and remove the flavouring ingredients if used.

To complete the salad mix the lentils with the roasted pumpkin and cauliflower.  Dress with herb dressing, check seasoning and crumble feta on top to serve.

There are a couple of great alternatives which also work well with this salad.

1. Use different vegetables – Capsicum, eggplant, beetroot, carrots could all be used successfully.
2. Chop the herbs rather than process them in the dressing.  This will make for a more textured salad.