Roasted Pumpkin with Persian Fetta and Pine NutsPrint Recipe

Every time we come home to Australia, we literally leave our suitcases at the door of our apartment and make our way to the local grocery store/markets to purchase those items we do not have access to in the midwest (USA). The top ones on our hit list are ham off the bone, sausage rolls, party pies, Maggie Beer ice cream, Harris Farm yogurt, Bowen Island breads and pumpkin.

I can see you are probably thinking that I am a little crazy, pumpkin pie is a traditional dessert at Thanksgiving in the USA – so of course Americans have pumpkin. Well, yes they do but it is not the same. The flavours of the pumpkins in the States are very different to those in Australia, in fact they almost taste like squash. Consequently, it is very hard for me to make a lot of the dishes I used to make because they require a fairly strong pumpkin flavour and not a watery version.

So Roasted Pumpkin with Persian Fetta and Pine Nuts is on the menu for dinner tonight. It has been on my mind each day as our trip to Australia got closer. For those of you that have been to my house for lunch or dinner, you would have certainly had it before. In fact, the only person that does not like it is my brother Brian who is an avid pumpkin hater for a variety of reasons. But those are stories for another day, now I must go and eat.

Yarra Valley Persian Fetta is the brand name for a luscious marinated feta made in the Yarra Valley, Australia. It can be purchased outside of Australia, I have found it in the US and in the UK.  If you cannot get your hands on it do not despair – any marinated feta will do. I am just a big, big fan of this particular one. In fact it’s this fetta in its delicious marinade of oil, garlic, thyme and a variety of other herbs that makes this dish really stand out.

750 grams/1.6 pounds of pumpkin, peeled and cut into rough 1.5” x 1.5” pieces (I like Butternut/Queensland Blue & Jap)
2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 teaspoon of sea salt
2 tablespoons of toasted pine nuts
½ tin (125 grams/4.4 ounces) of Yarra Valley Persian Fetta,

Preheat your oven to 220c/425f and position the rack to the middle of the oven.

Place pumpkin into a baking dish, sprinkle with the olive oil and salt. Mix through to ensure that each pumpkin piece is coated with the oil (mixing it with your hands will work a lot better than a utensil). Place into oven and roast for 1 1/2 – 2 hours or until the pumpkin is golden brown around the edges.

Remove from the oven and transfer the roasted pumpkin to a few sheets of paper toweling to absorb the oil. Let cool for around 30 minutes.

Pile the pumpkin on a serving dish. Break the Persian Fetta into small pieces and sprinkle over the pumpkin, along with the toasted pine nuts. Drizzle with a little of the oil from the fetta and serve.

Notes: I often serve this with a roast as a vegetable side or turn it into a salad tossing it with around 120 grams/4.25 ounces of rocket (arugula) or baby spinach.

Source: inspired by Ms Jennifer Duhnfahr

© 2010, Michelle. All rights reserved.