Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Warm Roasted Pumpkin & Shallot Salad


Months ago my mom gave me a pumpkin. No I didn't wait until now to use it (don't think it would've lasted that long). This is just one of those many back logged recipes I have yet to post about. I was looking for something interesting to do with said pumpkin and came across this warm salad recipe. Roasted pumpkin and shallots, rice, and a sunflower seed lemon cilantro dressing. Have you ever had a sunflower seed dressing? I made one once before for a delicious sunflower rice bowl and really liked it so thought this one would be good too and it was. The next day the lemon isn't as zingy, so you might want to squeeze a bit on if you have any leftovers. One sad thing was that after I had put finished putting together the salad, I broke a dish and some glass got in the salad. I was tempted to throw the whole thing out but I had just made it and was able to pick out the big pieces.


I think I was trying to artfully drizzle the dressing on top but it was more blobs than drizzle.


If this sounds good, you might also like:
Butternut Squash Casserole
Greek Barley Salad
Autumn Panzanella
Warm Vegetable Salad with Sesame-Maple Dressing

Warm Roasted Pumpkin & Shallot Salad
Adapted from 101 Cookbooks

3 cups of pumpkin (or other winter squash), peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
12 shallots, peeled and halved
1/2 tbsp olive oil
sea salt

2 cups cooked brown rice

1/3 cup sunflower seeds
2 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp water
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon honey (or agave to make it vegan)
2 tablespoons warm water
1/4 cup cilantro, finely chopped

Preheat oven to 375F.

Toss the pumpkin in a olive oil along with a couple pinches of salt, and turn out onto a baking sheet. At the same time, toss the shallots with a bit of olive oil, sprinkle with salt, and turn out onto a separate baking sheet. Roast both for about 45 minutes, or until squash is brown and caramelized. The same goes for the shallots, they should be deeply colored, caramelized, and soft throughout by the time they are done roasting. You'll need to flip both the squash and shallot pieces once or twice along the way - so it's not just one side that is browning.

In the meantime, make the dressing. With a hand blender or food processor puree the sunflower seeds, olive oil, water, lemon juice, salt, and honey until creamy. Stir in the cilantro. Taste and adjust seasonings (or flavors) to your liking.

In a large bowl, toss the rice with the dressing. Add the shallots, gently toss just once or twice. Turn the rice and onions out onto a platter and top with the roasted squash.

Serves 4-6.

11 comments:

Sarah S. said...

Holy moly this is awesome, Ashley. I still have a few winter squashies lingering, so this is perfect. If you figure out an artful way to dress a salad with a creamy dressing, let me know! So tricky :)

Joanne said...

I've made this before and added some ginger and white beans to it...so good. Eep about the glass! But you're okay so I guess it all turned out!

janet @ the taste space said...

I don't know about pumpkins, but squashes last for months! I can attest to that!! And they don't need refrigeration either. ;)

I love warm salads and this looks great. :) I am glad you are getting through your backlogged recipes.. I have quite a few as well. :)

Jocie's Mom said...

I love roast pumpking. We eat them in roti here but it looks equally delicious in a salad...you know, minus the glass :)

Thanks for sharing!

Johanna GGG said...

the dressing sounds great - and it looks wonderfully creamy - lovely for pumpkin

Adam said...

The salad looks great. I love pumpkin but have a tendency to only use it in desserts, so having more recipes is awesome (though I've been known to use pureed pumpkin mixed in with my scrabbled eggs :)). And I know how it feels to find yourself with an unexpected pumpkin. One day my uncle showed up with 3 baking pumpkins just for fun. Needless to say, my family had to put up with a lot of pumpkin themed desserts :).

Hannah said...

I've pretty much had my fill of pumpkins for this season, but that sunflower seed dressing sounds like a stroke of brilliance! That's a recipe I will definitely have to play with.

lizzieslog said...

Your salad looks yummy. Blobs taste good too!!

kimberleyblue said...

I love salads like this...hearty, flavourful ones that really stand up as a complete meal. I also love sunflower seeds in salads. This sounds perfect for me!

Homemade Heaven said...

I too am lucky enough to have a Dad who loves to garden, and his speciality is pumpkins. This is a wonderful recipe to use the giants he gives me each year. Thank you :)

Xiaolu @ 6 Bittersweets said...

Haha kept in a cold dark place, I wouldn't be surprised if it did last for months. That's why they're so great for fall/winter :). This looks fantastic and I love Heidi's blog for delicious veggie recipes.