Stuffed Butternut Squash with Quinoa and Feta

• 2butternut squash, about 1 kg each before trimming, halved lengthways and seeds removed
• 5 tbspolive oil
• 2 tspground cumin
• 1red onion, cut into thin wedges
• 4garlic cloves, unpeeled
• 200gquinoa, rinsed
• 150gspinach
• 60gdried apricots, chopped
• 40gpumpkin seeds
• 30 mllemon juice
• 20gflat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 150gfeta, crumbled
• fine salt
• black pepper
• 70grocket
• Finely grated lemon zest (2 g)

Method

1. 1Heat the oven to 180°C fan. Put the squash halves cut-side up on two trays. Share 1 tbsp olive oil between all four halves, then season with cumin, a small pinch of salt and pepper. Roast for 50–60 minutes until a knife slides easily through the thickest flesh. Toss the onion wedges and unpeeled garlic in a separate tablespoon of oil and add around the squash halfway through roasting, removing them earlier if browned and tender.
2. 2Meanwhile, put the quinoa in a saucepan with 400ml of water and a pinch of salt. Bring to the boil, cover and simmer for 15 minutes until the water has been absorbed and the grains show their little white tails. Take it off the heat, pile the spinach on top, put the lid back on for 3 minutes until the spinach has wilted, then stir it through.
3. 3Squeeze the soft roasted garlic out of its skins into the quinoa and add the roasted onion, apricots, half the pumpkin seeds, the lemon zest, half the lemon juice, 2 tablespoons of oil, half the parsley and half the feta. Season and taste: it should be sharp from the lemon, sweet from the apricots and nutty from the seeds.
4. 4Scoop some flesh out of each squash half to widen the hollow, leaving a wall about 1.5cm thick, and fold that flesh into the quinoa too. Pile the filling into the halves, mounding it up, and top with the rest of the feta and pumpkin seeds. Return to the oven for 12 minutes until the feta is soft and golden at the edges and the seeds are toasted.
5. 5Toss the rocket with the rest of the lemon juice, the last tablespoon of olive oil and a pinch of salt.
6. 6Serve a squash half each with the rest of the parsley scattered over and the rocket alongside.

Per serving

kcal

796

protein

23.4g

fibre

17.4g

carbs

110.8g

fat

34.1g