I seem to be eating a whole lotta pumpkin at the moment, but really, that’s a-ok with me! Anything with pumpkin in it seems to not only be delicious, but comforting as well, so I’ve been chopping and roasting it pretty much non-stop! That’s where this salad came from – hearty enough for me to take to work thanks to the base of both brown rice and lentils, plus with the flavour of the spiced pumpkin, it really is a winner! So here we go, my spiced pumpkin lentil salad!
Ingredients List
- Half a medium kent pumpkin
- Olive oil
- 2tsp cumin
- 2tsp smoked paprika
- 1tsp chilli flakes
- 3/4 cup brown rice
- 1 can lentils
- 2 cups rocket
- 50g goats cheese
Steps
- Preheat oven to 190C
- Peel and chop the pumpkin and toss with a drizzle of oil and the spices
- Spread onto a tray and roast for 20 minutes, then turn and roast for a further 10-15 minutes
- Meanwhile, cook the brown rice (I use my rice cooker) then set aside
- Drain and rinse the lentils and toss with the cooked rice
- Combine the pumpkin, lentils, rice and rocket in a serving dish and toss to combine
- Drizzle with a little olive oil then crumble the goats cheese on top
- Enjoy!
The nuttiness of the brown rice works so well with the roast pumpkin, and the lentils provide a little burst of flavour and texture as well which is just deeelicious. Combined with the slightly bitter rocket and the creamy goats cheese this salad really is an excellent flavour and texture combination (if I do say so myself!). Plus, it’s almost impossible to get wrong, which is always a good thing! It definitely made me happy munching away on it at work, that’s for sure!
On a side note, I find it so interesting that part of the world treats pumpkin as predominantly a savoury food, and another part of the world sees it as a sweet food, and there’s very little cross-over. I’ve eaten a little pumpkin pie in my time (a former housemate was dating an American) and I’m a big fan of pumpkin cakes at dumpling restaurants, but I’ve never actually cooked a sweet recipe with pumpkin myself – so I’m going to set myself the challenge to give it a try! If you’ve got any suggestions of where to start I’d love to hear them!
For now though, I’ll just keep enjoying this salad!
What’s been cooking in your kitchen recently? Fancy giving my spiced pumpkin lentil salad a go?
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I Spy Plum Pie is Liz, an early 30s kiwi-born, Melbourne raised girl who is passionate about the environment and sustainability, food, exploring and learning new things. Join me on my journey to a happy, sustainable life!
Lucy @ Bake Play Smile
June 1, 2015 at 7:16 am (9 years ago)Yum! I will absolutely be giving your salad a go! Thanks Liz!
Lucy @ Bake Play Smile recently posted…One Bowl Rich and Fudgy Chocolate Nutella Brownies
I Spy Plum Pie (admin)
June 7, 2015 at 8:55 pm (9 years ago)Hope you like it Lucy!
merilyn
June 1, 2015 at 9:06 am (9 years ago)love the healthiness of this salad and it looks good too thanks liz!
thinking to add a few cashews or walnuts could be nice too!
hope june is good for you liz!
love m:)X
I Spy Plum Pie (admin)
June 7, 2015 at 8:55 pm (9 years ago)You can never go wrong with throwing in a handful of nuts!
Elizabeth
June 1, 2015 at 3:46 pm (9 years ago)I love salads at all times of year but there’s a special place in my heart for winter salads with lots of roasted veggies.
Elizabeth recently posted…Spicy spelt and olive oil pumpkin bread
I Spy Plum Pie (admin)
June 7, 2015 at 8:55 pm (9 years ago)Me too Elizabeth, they’re hard to beat aren’t they!
Dannielle @ Zamamabakes
June 5, 2015 at 9:46 pm (9 years ago)Yum Liz!
Such a delicious combination of ingredients, definitely my type of salad, love it!
Thanks for joining in another round of our Fabulous Foodie Fridays fun.
Have a beautiful weekend lovely lady xx
Dannielle @ Zamamabakes recently posted…Fabulous Foodie Fridays #54
I Spy Plum Pie (admin)
June 7, 2015 at 8:54 pm (9 years ago)Thanks lovely xx
peregrinationgourmande
June 6, 2015 at 2:25 am (9 years ago)Yum! I love those kind of filling salad! perfect! xx cathy
peregrinationgourmande recently posted…The Best Blueberry Pie Recipe
I Spy Plum Pie (admin)
June 7, 2015 at 8:54 pm (9 years ago)Filling salads are the best kind of salads aren’t they!