Spanish beans, tomatoes and chard

Recipes

Follow Marcia Barrington to discover new ways to enjoy fresh and exciting ingredients with her healthy, seasonal and Mediterranean inspired recipes that work every time.

Festive Nut Roast

 
 

Toasty nuts, pumpkin, chestnuts & feta

350g (10½oz) mixed nuts, roasted with 1TBSP EVOO + drizzle with maple syrup + a flick of salt

1 tablespoon coriander seeds, toasted

1 tablespoon cumin seeds, toasted

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 x onions, medium diced

100g Padrón peppers, sliced from top to bottom, stalk and seeds taken out.

180g cooked or oven roasted chestnuts, chopped

50g (1¾oz) wholemeal breadcrumbs

2 heaped tablespoons chopped coriander

1 Harlequin squash (400g) or small butternut squash

2 large cloves garlic, crushed

2 large eggs, beaten

200g feta cheese

Crunchy salt and ¼ tsp Aleppo pepper

2TBSP melted butter (take to noisette)

100g chopped pistachio nuts

 You will need: an 8inch spring form cake tin, or loose-base sandwich tin 20 x 4cm, sides well oiled, lined with compostable parchment and a baking tray.

Preheat the oven to 200c/190c Fan - Cut the harlequin or butternut squash in half, top to bottom, scoop out the seeds, drizzle with olive oil and season. Place on a baking tray and cook in the oven until soft.

Using a pestle and mortar, crush together the toasty coriander and cumin seeds. Take a medium-sized frying pan, heat the olive oil and cook the onions until soft, add the crushed garlic and cook for a minute or two, add the spices, stir, and set to one side. At the same time, heat a small frying pan, add 2TBSP olive oil and blister the peppers until soft. Put them to one side.

Meanwhile, chop the mixed nuts by hand, or carefully pulse them in a processor. In a large bowl, mix the nuts, chopped chestnuts, breadcrumbs, fresh coriander, cooked squash and half of the feta cheese, and mix gently with your hands, turning the mix over from the bottom to the top. Add the cooked onion mix and the blistered peppers, season the mix with ½ tsp salt and ¼ tsp Aleppo pepper if you have it, or grind in some black pepper. Next add the lightly beaten eggs and mix.

Now pile the mixture into the prepared tin and press down well, crumble over the remaining feta and the chopped pistachios. Drizzle with the melted brown butter.

Transfer the tin to a baking sheet and bake on the lower shelf in the oven for 35 minutes turning the tin around halfway through cooking.

Serve cut into slices with a dollop of tomato chilli jam or al pastor marinade and thick Greek or coconut yoghurt.