Did you know that pumpkins offer vitamin C, vitamin E, iron, and folate -- all of which strengthen your immune system! This is why pumpkins should be a staple in your diet over the winter months, so fight off any nasty bugs. This week, we’ve included pumpkin in your produce boxes, as well as turnips and zucchini, all of which are great to use in any Winter or Autumn recipes.
The purpose of these recipes is to give you some inspiration for the week ahead. We’ve suggested meal ideas based on our produce selection and they can all be enjoyed on their own, or with any protein that suits your appetite.
Enjoy
Parmesan Crusted Crushed Turnips
Parmesan Crusted Crushed Turnips are a delicious, low-carb side dish. They’re easy to make and will change your mind about turnips!
- 3 medium turnips, peeled
- Salt
- 1 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (or as needed)
- Chopped fresh chives
Place peeled turnips in a pot of salted water to cover. Bring to a boil. Cook 20 to 30 minutes or until turnips can be pierced easily with a paring knife. Drain. Let cool slightly.
Preheat oven to 190 degrees.
Place the turnips on a clean kitchen towel or double layer of paper towels. Gently press each one down until it's approximately 1cm high. Let them drain for 15 minutes then carefully flip them over onto a dry section of the towel or onto fresh paper towels so the other side drains and dries a bit.
Combine garlic, olive oil and salt and black pepper, to taste in a small bowl.
Line a baking sheet with baking paper. Place the flattened turnips on the lined baking sheet. Brush each turnip with a little of the olive oil and garlic combination. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese over each turnip, gently pressing it down.
Carefully and quickly flip each turnip over. Repeat with the remaining olive oil and garlic combination and cheese.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Flip each turnip and bake an additional 15 minutes. Garnish with chopped fresh chives and serve.
Curried Pumpkin and Peas
- 2 tbsp. unsalted butter
- 1 medium onion
- 1 garlic clove
- 2 1/2 tsp. curry powder
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. Freshly ground pepper
- 450g pumpkin
- 2 medium red potatoes
- 1 1/2 c. low-sodium chicken broth
- 3/4 c. raisins
- 3/4 c. frozen peas
- fresh coriander
Heat butter in a large pan over medium-high heat, add onion, and cook until golden-brown, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more. Stir in curry powder, salt, and pepper. Add pumpkin and potatoes and cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Pour in broth and raisins, cover, and reduce heat to medium. After 15 minutes, add peas. Replace cover and continue to cook until pumpkin and potatoes are tender, 5 to 10 minutes more. Garnish with coriander.
Roasted Sweet Baby Broccoli and Lemon with Parmesan Pecan Gremolata
Roasting brings out the mellow flavour of sweet baby broccoli, making it an even more beautiful vegetable for the dinner table. This recipe is perfect for a side, or light meal.
For the broccoli
- 1 bunch sweet baby broccoli, washed and trimmed; leaves removed, chopped and set aside for the gremolata
- 1 lemon cut into slices
- 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- salt and fresh ground black pepper
For the gremolata
- ¾ cup pecans, toasted and finely chopped
- 4 large garlic cloves, minced
- Zest plus juice of 1 large lemon
- ½ cup parsley, finely chopped
- 1 cup Parmesan cheese, finely grated
- 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- ½ teaspoon salt (add more to taste if needed)
- ½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper (add more if desired)
Preheat oven to 220°.
Place sweet baby broccoli and lemon slices on a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast until tender and slightly browned, about 15-20 minutes. Remove from oven and place on a platter or in a shallow serving dish.
While sweet baby broccoli is roasting, mix together broccoli leaves, pecans, garlic, lemon zest, parsley, parmesan, salt and pepper. Drizzle lemon juice and melted butter over mixture and mix well.
Sprinkle gremolata over sweet baby broccoli and lemon slices, serve.
Turnip & leek gratin
This classic French side has sweetness from turnips and buttery leeks and is the perfect side dish to your favourite protein.
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 10g butter
- 2 leeks, pale section only, thinly sliced
- 3 turnips, peeled, cut into slices
- 3 potatoes, cut into thick slices
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 tsp plain flour
- 1 cup thickened cream
- 1/3 cup coarsely grated parmesan or cheese
Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease square baking dish. Heat oil and butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook leek, stirring, for 5-7 minutes or until soft. Season.
Arrange half the turnip over the base of the dish, overlapping slightly. Top with half the potato. Spread over leek mixture. Repeat with remaining turnip and potato.
Place milk in a microwave-safe jug. Cook on high for 1 minute or until warmed slightly. Transfer 1 tablespoon milk to a bowl. Whisk in flour. Combine the milk, flour mixture and cream in a jug. Season. Pour over turnip mixture.
Cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes. Uncover and bake for 20 minutes. Sprinkle with parmesan or cheese. Bake for a further 15-20 minutes or until tender and golden. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.
Air fryer zucchini chips
Cooking your zucchini chips in an air fryer makes them crunchy and golden but best of all you only need to use a fraction of the oil that you would use to shallow or deep fry them.
- 2 eggs
- 75g (1/2 cup) plain flour
- 60g (1 ¼ cups) panko breadcrumbs
- 50g (2/3 cup) finely grated parmesan
- 2 tsp dried Italian herbs
- 1/2 tsp ground paprika
- 4 zucchini, cut diagonally into 7mm slices
- Tomato pasta sauce, warmed, to serve
Lightly whisk the eggs in a shallow bowl. Place the flour in a separate shallow bowl. Combine the breadcrumbs, parmesan, herbs and paprika on a large plate.
Dip the zucchini slices the flour, shaking off excess. Working one at a time, dip zucchini into egg then breadcrumb mixture, pressing firmly to coat.
Arrange half the zucchini in a single layer in the basket of the air fryer. Spray well with oil and cook at 200°C for 5 minutes. Carefully turn the zucchini and spray again with oil. Cook for a further 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Repeat with remaining zucchini.
Return all the zucchini to the air fryer and cook for 3 minutes to reheat. Serve with the warm pasta sauce to dip.
Vegetable Stir Fry with Carrots, Broccoli and Cauliflower
A quick and easy vegetable stirfy for your weekday dinner or lunch. It's also packed with nutrients and flavour!
- 2 cups broccoli florets
- 2 cups cauliflower florets
- 1 medium carrot
- 5 fresh mushrooms
- 2 tablespoons extra light olive oil
- 1 large red onion
- 2 cloves garlic
- A sprinkle sea salt
- 2 tablespoons & 1 teaspoon low sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon white cooking wine
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon rice vinegar (or apple cider vinegar)
- 1 teaspoon tahini paste
- 1 teaspoon molasses
- ⅛ teaspoon ginger powder
- A pinch of red pepper flakes
Chop the onion in half, then slice into long, thin strips. Peel and dice the garlic finely. Put the onion and garlic, along with the two tablespoons of extra light olive oil and a sprinkle of salt into the frying pan for now.
Chop the broccoli and cauliflower into small florets and measure out about 2 cups. Use a julienne peeler to slice the carrot into long thin strips, or simply slice the carrot in whatever shape you want. Slice the mushrooms into small pieces, and finally, chop the bok choy in half, then in half again, then again. Combine the broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and mushrooms in a large bowl and keep the bok choy separate by itself.
Turn the frying pan with the onion and garlic to medium high (6 or just under, don’t let the stove turn red). Stir and fry the onions and garlic for about 7 minutes, then add the broccoli, cauliflower, carrot and mushrooms. Let it cook while you’re stirring for 5 minutes.
Meanwhile in a small bowl, add the soy sauce, cornstarch, cooking wine, sesame oil, rice vinegar, tahini, molasses, ginger powder and red pepper flake together. Stir until everything is mixed evenly.
After 5 minutes of cooking the vegetables, add the bok choy, the sauce mix and stir it around a lot, cooking for a final 8-10 minutes. At this point, you want to be always stirring so the bottom doesn’t burn.
Baked Potatoes
These baked potatoes are great for a super easy lunch or snack idea and are also kid friendly!
- 4 potatoes
- 3 tbsp. olive oil
- 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
- salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 2 c. shredded Cheddar cheese
- 2 tbsp. finely chopped chives
- sour cream, for garnish (optional)
Preheat oven to 220° and line a baking sheet with foil. Cut off the top of the potatoes. Using a paring knife, make three circular cuts in each potato, then place the potato cut side-down on a cutting board and slice crosswise, leaving a small space on the top uncut. Carefully flip the potatoes back over and place on baking sheet.
In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil and garlic powder. Brush potatoes with olive oil mixture and season with salt and pepper. Bake for 30 minutes.
Brush with the olive oil mixture and bake for another 30 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender. Scatter cheese on top of potatoes, making sure the cheese gets into all the nooks and crannies of the potatoes. Bake until the cheese is melted and the outsides of the potatoes begin to crisp, about 10 minutes.
Sprinkle with chives. Garnish with sour cream and serve warm.