Lamb with Roast Pumpkin Salad
This simple meal is bursting with flavour. The sweetness of the roast pumpkin is just gorgeous and it goes soooooooo well in a salad with spinach leaves, feta and toasted pine nuts. It is further enhanced by the dressing of balsamic vinegar, olive oil and garlic. It's a delicious combination that beautifully complements the natural flavour of the lamb.
You can start preparing this meal a bit ahead of time. When we had this a night or two ago, I prepared and roasted the pumpkin a couple of hours before dinner time. While the yummy, golden little wedges were roasting, I toasted the pine nuts (you can buy them already toasted but I love them when they are freshly toasted, which only takes a couple of minutes) and also prepared the other salad ingredients and the dressing. I then went to sit down for an hour or so until it was dinner time, and when it was time to eat all I really had to do was cook the lamb and let it rest before serving.
The original recipe uses a lot more salt and pepper than I did. I really don't think food needs to be swamped with salt and pepper, and the dressing here is already salty from the balsamic vinegar so I've omitted it from the dressing. I also took it very easy with the seasoning on the pumpkin and lamb — we only want just enough seasoning here to enhance the natural flavours.
Lamb with Roast Pumpkin Salad
Lamb with Roast Pumpkin Salad
Serves 2
Ingredients
- olive oil cooking spray
- 6 lean lamb cutlets
- Roast Pumpkin Salad
- 600 g butternut pumpkin, peeled, deseeded, cut into thin wedges
- 50 g baby spinach leaves
- 2 tablespoon pine nuts, toasted*
- 100 g feta cheese, cut into small cubes (I used Danish feta — I just love its creaminess — but use your own favourite or even a reduced-fat version)
- Dressing
- 4 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
- 4 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
Directions
- Preheat oven to 230°C.
- Line a baking dish with baking paper. Place pumpkin in a single layer in baking dish. Spray with oil. Season with a little salt and pepper. Turn pumpkin. Repeat with oil and salt and pepper.
- Roast for 20 minutes, turning once, until tender.
- Preheat a barbecue grill or chargrill on medium-high heat. Spray both sides of lamb with oil. Season with a little salt and pepper. Cook for 2 minutes each side for medium or until cooked to your liking.
- Transfer to a plate. Cover loosely with foil. Stand for 5 minutes.
- Place spinach, pine nuts and feta in a bowl. Toss to combine.
- Whisk vinegar, oil and garlic in a jug. Add to salad with pumpkin. Toss gently to combine.
- Serve lamb with roast pumpkin salad.
Notes
The dressing is quite garlicky, so if you have to breathe on anyone later, you may want to tone down the garlic a bit!
*To toast pine nuts, heat a dry skillet on medium-low. Add the pine-nuts and shake and stir for a minute or two, until the nuts are lovely and golden all over and smell and taste divine. (Yep I always taste — I can't help myself!) Remove them from the pan immediately they're done to your satisfaction, as they will continue to brown for as long as they are in contact with the hot pan.
Posted by Vicki on Friday, April 23, 2010 at 11:18 AM in Recipes and Lamb and Low-fat.
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