Hi, this recipe is from the Guardian's 'Feast' magazine, issue 197, Saturday 23rd October 2021, page 16 by Rukmini Lyer. Find online here. From the same issue, I have also made Nik Sharma's 'Baked Eggs with Roast Tomato Sauce', if you are interested.
This recipe was not an instant hit in our family, in fact we weren't very keen on it at all. However, it was easy to make and used ingredients that are easy to find.
Personally, overall I thought it was okay, but I also think that it needed another flavour in it. It felt very squash heavy, and a lot of the same mushy textures. We (me and my family) thought that it would be nice as a side to another element such as roast chicken legs or sausages (veggie if required) or falafels or some spiced chickpeas in a tomato sauce (see last week's recipe) because it got a bit boring towards the end of the meal. So, if you were to make this meal, I suggest that you serve it with something else whether that be crusty bread and a savoury spread (I would suggest tapenade, green or black) or a source of protein. You may then need to reduce quantities of ingredients to make it suitable for a side depending on how many you are serving though. Alternatively, you could stir through some cooked protein and bake in the second half of cooking with the squash and gnocchi to make a pasta bake style dish too. Maybe topping in the last 5 -10mins with some sliced of mozzarella to create a gooey, melted cheese topping too.
If you don't wish to serve as a side, to elevate this dish, make sure to serve with the feta cheese (my mum thinks it is essential for extra flavour) and add a dash more chilli flakes or another spice to the dish such as nutmeg (for a sweeter dish) or cumin or turmeric (for a more spiced one). Also, drizzle with olive oil before serving too.
Enjoy!
Hazel :)
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Dietary Info:
-No Nuts
-Vegetarian
-Main Meal
-Side Dish
-Contains Dairy
{In place of the crème fraiche, use Oatly Fraiche or a similar alternative. If you can't find any specific creme fraiche alternatives, use a plain dairy-free Greek-style yogurt. The same goes for the feta, if you can't find a specific alternative like Violife Greek White Block, either leave it out entirely, use a different cheese alternative e.g. a Vegan cheddar or sprinkle with nutritional yeast.}
-Contains Gluten
{Use gluten free breadcrumbs either shop brought or make your own by blitzing gluten free bread in a blender or ripping it up with your hands. Another idea is to use flaked almonds on top too.}
-Unsuitable for Vegans
{See 'Contains Dairy'.}
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Prep: 15 min
Cook: 55 min
Serves: 4-6 {I halved for the amount of gnocchi for 3 people and used less crème fraiche too.}
Ingredients:
-1kg squash or pumpkin, peeled, deseeded and cut into 1½ cm cubes {1kg is the peeled weight, this was 2 small butternut squashes for me. You could also use 1kg of frozen squash to roast.}
-1 sprig rosemary, needles chopped {I used thyme as we don't have any rosemary. However, I think that rosemary would've been nicer.}
-1tsp chilli flakes {I used chilli power (same quantity).}
-1tsp sea salt flakes
-1+1/2tbsp olive oil {I used extra virgin olive oil. You could also use chilli oil if you like, to match the chilli flakes added earlier.}
-1kg potato gnocchi {For 3 people, I used 500g gnocchi)
-250g sliced kale {These come in 200g packets, so I only used 200g.}
-500ml creme fraiche {For 3 people, I used 300ml. But, I did then put the tub on the table when serving so people could help themselves to any more if they so desired.}
-200g feta cheese, crumbled {I used 100g for 3 people.}
-Big handful panko breadcrumbs {I tore up a slice of bread and sprinkled it on top, if making for 4-6 people, use 2 slices of bread.}
-Black pepper, freshly ground
Method:
1: Preheat the oven to 200°C / 180°C fan / 390°F / gas 6. Tip the squash or pumpkin, rosemary, chilli flakes, sea salt flakes and olive oil into a large, deep roasting tin. Mix well, {You may need to use your hands to ensure they are well coated.} then transfer to the oven to bake for 25 minutes, until just softening. {About half way through baking, remove the tray from the oven and give it a stir to prevent the squash from sticking.}
2: Place the kale into a large bowl, {A mixing bowl works well, I used a glass one.} and cover with boiling water. Leave to sit for two minutes to blanch, then drain well and set aside.
3: Put the gnocchi into the bowl you just used for the kale, and cover with another kettleful of boiling water. Leave to sit for two minutes to blanch, then drain well. {You can now prepare the feta cheese and, if making yourself, the breadcrumbs too. This makes sure everything is ready for when it comes out of the oven.}
4: Once the squash has had 25 minutes in the oven, remove from the oven and gently stir through the blanched kale, gnocchi and creme fraiche until evenly mixed. (It doesn’t matter that the gnocchi won’t sit all in one layer, as this is a gratin-style dish.)
5: Scatter over the feta cheese, then a big handful or so of panko breadcrumbs and a good amount of freshly ground black pepper. Drizzle with a little olive oil if you wish, then transfer to the oven to bake for 30 minutes, until golden brown and crisp on top.
6: Serve hot, with some roasted cherry tomatoes or a green salad on the side if you wish. Pairs well with an oaky chardonnay. {I didn't serve with anything on the side.}
While you're here...
I have a Pinterest for all my recipes, where you can save them to boards for the future and categorise them into different types of recipe e.g Sunday Dinners, picnic ideas etc. My account is @hazellikestocook, or find the link below. Also, I have a whole blog post explaining this in more detail here and https://hazelscookingandbakingblog.blogspot.com/2021/02/pinterest.html.
https://pin.it/5xDvARk - my profile
This recipe:
https://pin.it/7xRqdMj
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