Sausages and Pumpkin and Lentils, Oh My!

Last year, my mum gave me a calendar she got from Sainsbury's (British supermarket), and each month has a different recipe. I haven't made any of the recipes yet, but a couple of weeks ago I noticed the November recipe looked extremely amazing. The full title? Chunky sausage, pumpkin and lentil pot. Yes please!

The "before" shot

Since I saw that recipe I have been excited about trying it. Yesterday's experiment with making harissa paste was part of this bigger, sausagey picture. I even went out and bought a cast iron casserole dish for the occasion (although I plan to use it for more than just this one recipe!)

Veggie broth time

So today was the day. I made it earlier in the afternoon since I'd planned a much-needed trip to the gym for a 5:30 Zumba class and didn't think I'd want to cook once I got home. The recipe was actually very easy and didn't take much time at all. The most time-consuming part was peeling, deseeding and chopping the pumpkin.

Pre-mixing

Once I got to taste the deliciousness that was my dinner tonight, I was amazed that the dish could actually taste as good as I thought it would, if not better. I actually didn't have enough lentils as the recipe called for, so my version was a little more soupy, but no less awesome.

Yes, I took too many photos of this masterpiece

Since I'm trying to eat less meat, my bowl was mainly pumpkin and lentils. But trust me, there were a couple of rogue snausage sniblets in there! Ben was a lucky chap with a much more sausage-intensive bowl. We both loved it and the best part is that Ben has leftovers to eat for dinner tomorrow while I sushi it up with my book club buddies!

Please eat me!!!

Chunky Sausage, Pumpkin and Lentil Pot


1 tsp olive oil
4 Johnsonville original brats (or 2 packs British pork sausages)
1 large onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 1/2 lbs (700g) pumpkin, peeled, deseeded and roughly chopped
1 bay leaf
6 sprigs fresh thyme
2 tbsp harissa paste
2 cups (500ml) vegetable broth
8 oz (250g) dried green lentils
1 can (400g) chopped tomatoes
1 cup (200ml) water

Heat oil in a skillet and brown sausages. Remove, cut into chunks and return to skillet to brown cut edges. Set sausage chunks aside.

Sweat onions in a large casserole or Dutch oven for 10 minutes. Add garlic, pumpkin, bay leaf, thyme, harissa paste, broth, lentils, tomatoes and water; mix well.

Bring to the boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove the lid, add the sausages and simmer uncovered for a further 5 minutes. Serve and enjoy!

Makes 4-6 servings, depending on appetite.

Pumpkins, Pumpkins Everywhere!

Since embracing a healthier lifestyle, I've signed up for a fortnightly fruit and veggie box from Green Bean Delivery. Last week I received my first ever pie pumpkin. I was way more excited than a person should be when faced with a pumpkin, but I'd been wanting to try cooking with fresh pumpkin since summer.

I cut my pumpkin in half, scooped out the insides and laid each half face-down in a 9x13 casserole dish. I added 1/4 inch of water and baked at 350 Fahrenheit for 45 minutes. Once done, I scooped out the yummy, pumpkinny flesh into a bowl and started creating!

Saturday night I made pumpkin risotto with a recipe adapted from my favorite healthy food blog, Skinny Taste. Sunday morning I made pumpkin spices pancakes with pumpkin butter (recipes also from Skinny Taste). Monday night I still had a cup of pumpkin puree left, so I doctored a recipe to make pumpkin and currant muffins. I made 12, but froze most of them by wrapping each one in cling film and putting them in a large Tupperware container. They can either defrost at room temperature, or in a low-temp oven until thawed.

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Muffins with Currants


1 cup pumpkin puree (use canned for quickness if you like)
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups currants, raisins, sultanas, or any other dried fruit
1 egg white
1 tsp vanilla
2 tbsp melted butter or margarine

Preheat oven to 325 (165 Celcius)

Mix flour, sugar, salt and baking soda together in a large bowl.

Combine pumpkin puree, egg white, butter and vanilla in a medium bowl and mix well.

Add pumpkin mixture to flour mixture and stir until blended. Add currants and mix well.

Divide batter between 12 lined muffin tins and make for 25 minutes. You'll know the muffins are ready when a toothpick inserted into the center of one comes out clean.

(Original recipe from Skinny Taste)