Christmassy stuffed pumpkin
I was honestly shocked at how well this came out, and what made it was the sauces I topped it with.
Stokes kindly sent me some of their mint sauce, and it’s AMAZING. This is something I’ll absolutely be making as Christmas & roast season rolls around.
Recipe, makes 2 portions;
THE FILLING
1/2 block smoked tofu
1 1/2 cups mixed chopped veg (I used 1/2 orange pepper, 1 tomato, 1/2 cup chopped kale, and 1/3 head broccoli)
1 onion, cubed into small pieces
2 cloves garlic
1 tbsp ketchup
1 tbsp tomato puree
3 tbsp soy sauce
Pinch salt
Pepper
2 tbsp vinegar
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp honey
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 pumpkin
THE CHEESE TOP
2 tbsp cream cheese
Sprinkle garlic powder
Sprinkle turmeric
Splash milk
TO TOP
Fresh thyme
Fresh rosemary
1/4 cup chopped roasted nuts
Mint sauce
Method
Roast your pumpkin whole at 170°C, wrapped in foil, for around 1 hour, or until slightly soft to the touch.
Whilst your pumpkin roasts, chop all your veg into small pieces.
Add 2 tbsp olive oil to a large frying pan, and allow to heat up on medium heat.
Add your chopped onion, and minced garlic and sauté for 3-5 minutes, until the onion is slightly translucent.
Add your other veg bit by bit - add the hardest veg like carrot and pepper first, then softer greens later on.
Add your spices, salt and pepper, and the rest of your ingredients.
Cook your veg for around 5-10 minutes, adding a splash of water if needed, to stop the veg sticking.
Once your veg is almost soft, grate in 1/2 block smoked tofu, making sure it gets well mixed in with the veg.
Turn the heat off, and leave to sit whilst you mix your cheese topping.
Turn the oven up to 200°C.
Mix the cream cheese and spices with a splash of milk, to loosen, then adjust to taste and set aside.
Once your pumpkin is squishy to the touch, unwrap the tinfoil, cut the pumpkin in half, remove the seeds, and stuff half with your tofu and veg mix.
Top with your cream cheese mixture, then bake for another 10-15 mins, until the top has slightly browned.
Remove from the oven, leave to sit for a couple of mins, top with mint sauce, your thyme and rosemary, chopped roasted nuts, and some chilli flakes if you fancy it.
Notes + Variations:
You can use vegan cream cheese for this too, which would make it completely vegan, and switch up the veg you put in to make it your own.
