Cous cous stuffed butternut squash

Sorry no pic at the moment, I haven't taken one yet!  Will put one up soon.

Ingredients 

1 butternut squash

1 packets Asda giant Mediterranean cous cous

1/2 packet feta cheese 

1 onion

6 small mushrooms

1 pepper 

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.

Cut butternut squash in half, put one half aside (see other squash recipe!).  Scoop out the seeds to leave a clean hollow.  Gently with a sharp knife, cut lines lengthways in the squash flesh without piercing the skin, do the same across the squash to make cubes in the flesh again without piercing the skin.

Rub the flesh with olive oil.

Put squash into a roasting tin flesh side up and roast in oven for an hour or until flesh is squishy.

Whilst the squash is roasting, make up the cous cous as the packet describes and leave to cook.  Chop the onion into small pieces and saute in a pan, once soft add the chopped pepper and mushrooms and stir until cooked.  Add the couscous and a little stock or wine to make it not so dry.  Chop up the feta and add and scoop a little of the squash out of the flesh to make a boat shape and add the squash to the couscous mix.

Divide the couscous mix up between the two pieces of squash and then put back in the oven for 10 mins just to toast the cheese slightly.

Serve with a green salad.

Butternut Squash, lentil and goats cheese salad

Serves 4

Ingredients 

1 bag baby leaf salad

1 butternut squash

1 tin green put lentils

1 log soft goats cheese

Balsamic glaze (Asda do a good one)

Cracked black pepper

Chilli salt

Put oven on at 180 degrees.

Cut butternut squash in half, put one half aside (see other squash recipe!).  Scoop out the seeds to leave a clean hollow.  Gently with a sharp knife, cut lines lengthways in the squash flesh without piercing the skin, do the same across the squash to make cubes in the flesh again without piercing the skin.

Rub the flesh with olive oil and sprinkle with pepper and salt, I use chilli salt for a little spice.

Put squash into a roasting tin flesh side up and roast in oven for an hour or until flesh is squishy.

Take out of oven once done and allow to cool.

Once cooled, put bag of lettuce leaves in a bowl, add about 2/3 of tin of lentils over the top.  Scoop the flesh out of the butternut squash skin, it should come out in more manageable pieces, and lay on top of the lentils.  Use about half of the goats cheese log, either chop into cubes, or I just break into pieces with my fingers, spread around the salad.

Drizzle with balsamic glaze and serve.

Ravioli fillings

This is an extension on the Spicy Squash Tortelloni I made last year. I bought a ravioli press from Lakeland Limited which helped immensely and then the second time I tried these I had bought the pasta machine attachment for my Kenwood chef which made making the pasta sheets a lot quicker and easier.

First you need to make pasta dough, the second time I made the ravioli, as I was making four different fillings, I added different flavours to the pasta dough to change the colour, add a tablespoon of pesto to make green, a tablespoon of sun dried tomato paste to make it red, tablespoon of olive tapenade to make it black. Once the dough is kneaded and ready leave it in the fridge whilst you make the fillings:

Spicy Squash and Ricotta - I used the spicy squash recipe from above but added 2 tsp cumin seeds to the mix as well and added some courgette to the squash I had peeled. Then I mashed it all up and added a tub of ricotta to it and put it in the fridge.

Goats chesse and sundried tomato - 2 logs of soft goats cheese, 10 pieces of sundried tomato - put into a food processor and mix together adding salt and pepper to taste, put in fridge to cool.

Boursin mushroom - chop one onion finely and one 500g portion of mushrooms (preferably chop in the food processor to get very fine) mix with a 200g French Roule to make a creamy garlic mushroom mix, put in fridge to cool.

Mozerella, courgette and onion - fry onions and courgettes in a pan (probably 3-4 courgettes and 1-2 medium onions) and then chop 2 balls mozerella finely and mix in as well, leave to cool.

Pulled Beef - the day before or in the morning put a joint of beef (a cheap one will do) into a slow cooker or a very low oven with a bottle of red wine, a couple of sticks of celery and an onion chopped into two and leave to stew for 6-8hrs. Once it is cooked remove from the juice but do not discard. Place the beef on a chopping board and pull apart into strings of meat, once it is all pulled apart add it to a pan with some of the cooking juice and reduce down. Add a jar of tomato pasta sauce and again reduce down. Leave to cool.

Take the pasta and roll into sheets, do not take it to the thinnest sheet level, but one just before to leave it a little thicker and more elastic. Each portion of pasta dough made as per the recipe above can be cut into 4 and will make 4 sheets which each make one portion of 12 ravioli so 48 pieces of each.

Once you have the sheet made, flour both sides and flour the press. Place the sheet over the press and gently push the white piece into the pasta to form the cups for the fillings. Add just under a teaspoon of whichever mix into the cups. Take an egg wash (egg mixed with milk) and paste the remaining pasta sheet with it so when you lay it over the top of the pasta with filling and roll over the top of the press it forms a good seal. Tip the pieces out of the press and cut further with a knife if needed. Place the pieces of ravioli on a floured plate and allow to dry for an hour.

To cook place in boiling water for around 6-8 minutes and serve with a flavoured butter.

Spicy Squash Tortelloni

Another fantasic Jamie recipe starts this one off. Spicy Roasted Squash

• 1 medium/large squash
• 2 tsp coriander seeds
• 2 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp fennel seeds
• 2 small dried red chillis or small amount chopped chillis
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp freshly ground pepper
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 tblsp olive oil
• 1 batch pasta dough (see other recipe)
• 150g Boursin cheese
• Chopped fresh basil

Cut squash in half, remove the seeds with a spoon and then cut the squash into wedges or segments. Place in a bowl or bag.

Toast the seeds in a dry frying pan until you can smell the spices, then add to a pestle and mortar or flavour shaker with the dried herbs and pound. Then add the salt, pepper, garlic and olive oil. Add the paste to the squash and mix it round until coated thoroughly.

Place the squash pieces in a casserole or on a baking tray skin side down and roast in oven at 200 degress for about 30 minutes.

Once cooked scoop the squash flesh away from the skins into a bowl. Add chopped basil and the boursin cheese and mash until combined.

Using a pasta machine or rolling pin roll the pasta dough out into sheets then use a cicular cookie cutter (about 4-5cm diameter) to cut circles out of the dough.

Place about a third of a teaspoon of mixture in the centre of a circle. Brush water round the outside edge and fold the circle in half, sticking the dough together at the edges. With this semicircle, bring the two corner points together in the middle and squeeze to make a slight barrel shape. Put onto kitchen roll (drying them out makes them easier to handle) and carry on making the rest!

Once all are made, boil a pan of water and add to pan for just 3-4 minutes. Place in bowl and drizzle on melted butter mixed with pesto as seasoning. Serve with fresh parmesan cheese.