PUMPKIN, SILVERBEET & SWEET POTATO MASHUP

This meal was loosely based on a delicious breakfast I had at Elk cafe at Broadbeach. I loved my meal so much that I endeavoured to remember the flavours and recreate this mashup of sorts in my own kitchen. This mixup of hearty winter vegetables is so tasty that the bacon or ham is completely optional and can easily be omitted without reducing the flavour. This is a true winter meal that can be served for breakfast, lunch or dinner! 

Ingredients

• 1 large sweet potato (600g), peeled and roughly chopped
• 450g pumpkin, peeled & seeds removed, roughly chopped
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil 
• 1/2 a large leek, white part only, finely chopped
• Optional - 120g bacon or ham, roughly chopped
• 1/2 a bunch of silverbeet, shredded 
• 2 tablespoons of fresh basil and / or fresh parsley, finely chopped 

Cooking 

1. Bring a medium saucepan of water to the boil over high heat. Add the sweet potato and cover with a lid. After 5 minutes add the pumpkin and cover. Remove from the heat after 5 more minutes and drain well. 

2. Once the sweet potato has been added to the boiling water heat a large, deep fry pan over medium heat and add the oil, swirling to coat. Add the leek to the pan and cook, stirring, for 1-2 minutes or until the leek becomes brighter in colour. Next add the bacon to the pan and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low, add the silverbeet and stir well to combine, then cover and leave for 2-3 minutes or until the silverbeet has completely wilted. 

3. Remove from the heat and stir the cooked sweet potato and pumpkin, herbs and a pinch of sea salt & ground black pepper into the silverbeet mixture. 

Serves / 4 

Total Preparation time / 15-20 minutes 

Total Cooking time / 15-20 minutes 

x Emily 

SIMPLE PORK & SILVERBEET on BROWN RICE

Silver beet or swiss chard as it is also called, is all around at the moment and is selling at an uber cheap price. Silver beet has an earthy flavour and is a great source of fibre, folate and vitamins A and C. This vegetable tastes delicious with garlic, herbs, chilli and/or lemon. This is my go-to dish whenever I want to make a no-fuss dinner for myself and Chris. Chris added a splash of soy sauce to his dish (what is it with men and adding sauce to things?) however I think it is delicious with just the garlic, chilli flakes, spring onions and pepper. Just a quick note; the amount of rice per serving is meant to be small, so don't worry if it looks tiny, as the silver beet & pork will fill you up. 

Ingredients

• 1 cup brown rice 
• 1 tablespoon rice bran oil
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 500g extra lean or organic pork mince 
• 1 bunch of silver beet, white stalks removed, leaves washed & shredded 
• Optional- 1 spring onion, roughly chopped & a sprinkle of chilli flakes

Cooking 

1. Place the rice and 2 cups of water in a small to medium saucepan and bring to the boil over high heat. Once boiled, reduce to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes or until all the water is absorbed and the rice is tender. 

2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large, deep frying pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and stir well for 1 minute, then add the pork mince. Cook the pork mince for 5 minutes or until it is just cooked, breaking up all the lumps. 

3. Add the shredded silver beet to the pork and cover with a lid. Leave the silver beet for 2-3 minutes or until it has just wilted, then remove the lid and stir well to combine. Sprinkle with a generous dash of ground black pepper. 

Divide the rice into 4 servings, then add the silver beet & pork and  sprinkle spring onions and chilli flakes on top, if desired. 

Serves / 4 

Total Preparation time / 10 minutes 

Total Cooking time / 30-35 minutes 

x Emily 

SILVERBEET, PUMPKIN & BLACK BEAN STEW

This recipe was inspired from a recipe on Goop, Gwyneth Paltrow’s online website, found in the ‘Dark Leafy Greens’ post. I have been wanting to try using silverbeet for a long time as I have never cooked it myself before. I will freely admit that I watched a 20 second video on how to prepare it (gosh I love the internet, there's just everything out there that you need or have ever wondered about). It was a bit of a rainy day in Brisbane on Monday, hence the warmer meal. As regular readers of this blog and of Soulful Sandwiches may know, I have been trying and trying to get my fiancé to eat hearty meals without any meat in them. Now I’m not a vegetarian myself but sometimes my body just does not feel like meat or does not need it. This meal was one of the most filling vegetarian meals I have had in a while and I’d definitely recommend this recipe (or Gwyneth’s; she uses sweet potato, white beans and kale).

INGREDIENTS

• 1 tablespoon coconut oil
• 1 white onion, roughly chopped
• 2 large garlic cloves, crushed
• 2 tablespoons lemon pepper
• 700g pumpkin, seeds & peel removed and chopped into even cubes
• 1 x tin of 400g diced tomatoes 
• 500ml (2 cups) vegetable stock 
• 1/3 - 1/2 bunch of silver beet (2 cups tightly packed), stem removed, chopped & washed 
• 1 x 400 tin of black beans, washed & drained

COOKING 

1. Heat coconut oil in a large saucepan over medium heat for 1 minute. Next add the onion and garlic and stir until the onion is soft and the garlic is fragrant. Add the lemon pepper and pumpkin and stir well until all ingredients are combined. Pour in the tomatoes and stir frequently for 5 minutes, until the pumpkin starts to soften. 

2. Add the stock, silver beet and black beans to the pan and stir to combine. Place the lid on the pan and reduce the heat to a low simmer for around 15 minutes or until the pumpkin is soft and tender but not mushy (to make sure mushiness does not happen, check on the stew around the 10-12 minute mark and spear a fork through the biggest cube of pumpkin you can find - if the fork goes in easier the stew is done, if there is some resistance give the stew a few more minutes on the stove). 

Serves / 4

Total Preparation time / 20 minutes 

Total Cooking time / 25-30 minutes 

x Emily