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Quinoa cranberry stuffed mini-pumpkins with shitake mushrooms

Besides being really cute, these mini pumpkins were crying out to be stuffed with something savoury. I had a flashback of an unforgettable lunch in Tuscany where the pumpkin gnocchi was gloriously doused in sage butter. Add to that memory an intense craving for my annual christmas mexican style cranberry chutney and the idea for this dinner was born.
Course Mains
Cuisine Dairy Free, Gluten Free, Nutrient Rich, Refined Sugar Free
Prep Time 35 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings 4
Author Laura Livesey

Ingredients

  • 4 mini-pumpkins
  • 1 red onion diced
  • 3 Tbsp fresh sage or 1 Tbsp dry, minced
  • 3 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 red chilli or as much heat as you like - I like things to be spicy, so adjust downwards if you prefer milder tastes, minced
  • 1 punnet shitake mushrooms 125 g, diced
  • 1/2 cup dried cranberries
  • 1/2 cup pinenuts
  • 1/4 cup fresh parsley chopped
  • Zest and 1 Tbsp juice from 1 lime
  • 2 cups cooked quinoa 1 cup dry

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven
  2. Wash the mini-pumpkins, dry them and then cut off the lids (do a few rough zigzags around the top, and the lid will pop off). Scoop out the seeds.
  3. Line a deep baking sheet with tinfoil, pour a few Tbsp of hot water onto the foil, then place your 4 pumpkin bodies onto the tray and put tray in the oven for 20-30 minutes until soft. (Note: If you have room, you can also bake the little lids alongside them for a nice presentation option!)
  4. While the pumpkins are in oven, get a small pot and bring just under 2 cups of water to a boil. Add 1 cup quinoa and turn heat to simmer with lid on for about 15 mins.
  5. In a large pot, melt coconut oil on medium heat and cook the onions, for a few minutes. Add the garlic, chilli and sage and cook for 1 more minute. Finally add the shitake mushrooms and cook them for a few minutes until they turn soft.
  6. Take off the heat, and add the cranberries, pinenuts, fresh parsley, lime zest, lime juice and cooked quinoa. Stir to mix well!
  7. Peek in on your pumpkins. Once they start to brown a bit, and are soft and edible, take them out of the oven.
  8. Spoon your quinoa stuffing into each pumpkin and serve straight away.