A fresh salad is not just a great dish for warm days! This salad combines seasonal pumpkins with grilled brussels sprouts and caramelised pears. Enjoy this salad on its own or as a side dish for a Christmas dinner :)
Ingredients (4 servings):
1 Lettuce
~400g Pumpkin (Hokkaido or Butternut)
Olive Oil
2 tsp Garam Masala
Chili Powder
2 handful of Brussels Sprouts, stem cut and outer leaves removed
2 Conference Pears
Sugar
1 Cucumber
2 tbsp Walnut Oil (alternatively olive oil)
1 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
Pepper
Some Walnuts
Blue Cheese
Method:
Thoroughly wash the lettuce in cold water and strain. Cut the lettuce into smaller pieces if necessary and set aside.
Preheat the oven to 180°C. If you are using a butternut pumpkin you have to peel it. If you decided to go with a Hokkaido, you do not have to peel it but make sure to give the pumpkin a good scrub under hot water. With a large knife, cut the pumpkin in half and spoon out the seeds. Cut the pumpkin into bite-sized cubes and mix with some olive oil, about one teaspoon of Garam Masala and a pinch of chili powder. Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes until soft.
Meanwhile, bring some water to boil in a small cooking pot. Cut the brussel sprouts in half and gently simmer in the water for about 7-8 minutes. The brussel sprouts should be soft but not mushy. Drain the water and set aside.
Wash the pears and cut into small cubes. In a pan, heat some olive oil on medium high heat and add a teaspoon of sugar. Once the sugar starts to dissolve in the oil, add the pear and grill it for 4-5 minutes until golden and sugary. Sprinkle with Garam Masala and remove from the pan. Now add the cooked brussels sprouts to the pan and grill until slightly browned. Turn off the heat and add the pears back to the pan to keep them warm with the sprouts.
Place the lettuce in a large salad bowl. Whisk together the walnut oil, vinegar and pepper, and combine thoroughly with the lettuce. Dice a cucumber and add it to the lettuce together with the pumpkin, brussels sprouts and pear. Crunch the walnuts and crumble the blue cheese over the salad. Enjoy this colourful seasonal salad as long as the pumpkin, sprouts and pears are still warm! :)
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