Hello, young Padawan
Well, we had a lovely late season. Your faithful servant wore her flip-flops until the beginning of November, unbelievable, but now it’s high time to take out the chestnuts, squash, and all the rest to help our body to warm up.
Never mind, let’s go easy with this pretty recipe that will delight young and old with its simplicity and cuteness.
Autumn stuffed
For two servings.
4 mini pumpkins, mini squash, or a single small squash of your choice. The taste will be the same; the presentation will differ. Do what you find.
1/4 cup Azuki beans
6 chestnuts
4 button mushrooms
8 roasted hazelnuts
1 tbsp pumpkin seeds
2 tsp ground nutmeg
2 tsp Espelette pepper
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp powdered broth (or 1/4 stock cube) of vegetables.
2 tbsp of olive oil
Salt, Madagascar pepper
Optional: a few sprigs of fresh coriander.
Recipe
Soak the Azuki beans for at least 6 hours before making the recipe in a large bowl of fresh water.
Wash, dry, and cut the mini pumpkins’ hats with love, glory, beauty, and above all, without cutting yourself. Be careful; it slips, especially if your knife is not sharp enough. Empty them of their seeds, and reserve them for the rest of the recipe.
Cook the previously drained and rinsed azuki beans in a large volume of boiling water for 5-7 min over medium heat; check the cooking; they must remain “al dente.”
Preheat the oven to 329°F.
For the stuffing: Coarsely crush the hazelnuts and the pumpkin seeds, and slice the mushrooms and chestnuts. Arrange everything in a salad bowl; add half of the nutmeg, Espelette pepper, and garlic. Salt, pepper, and stir gently.
For the flavored olive oil to brush on the pumpkins: In a small ramekin, pour the olive oil and the rest of the spices, namely a teaspoon of nutmeg, Espelette pepper, and half a teaspoon of garlic powder. Salt, pepper, and mix.
Arrange the mini squash (or the small squash on its own) in an ovenproof dish and pour 250 ml of water into the bottom of the dish. Stuff them to the brim so the little hat closes each squash well. Set the rest of the stuffing aside.
Brush each squash with the fragrant olive oil, not forgetting the inside of the hat and the top of the stuffing, then the outsides everywhere. If there are any left, divide over each of the small squash.
Bake halfway up for 30 to 40 minutes; check the squash halfway through cooking with a sharp knife (do not hesitate to add a little water if the bottom of the dish is dry), and then 10 minutes from the end because the cooking time varies according to the power of the ovens.
Add, if you have extra stuffing, pour it in the bottom of the dish without putting any on the pumpkins.
The squashes are cooked when they are very soft, when the tip of a knife sinks in on its own. Leave to cool for a few minutes.
Presentation
Place a mini stuffed squash in your prettiest fall plates, with or without the rest of the stuffing, if necessary.
If you used a small squash, you can either present it as is at the table then cut it up. But if like me, you are not very comfortable and inclined to splash your whole tablecloth, guests included, I invite you to remove the cap from the stuffed squash and simply cut it in half vertically, then split the cap in two, and present it lying down, on each plate.
A few chopped coriander leaves will enhance the flavors of this lovely dish. Athletes will add a portion of rice to have the complete chain of essential amino acids.
To accompany everything, a beautifully aromatic white wine, such as a Loire one, like white Sancerre, will delicately awaken the taste buds without weighing down the delicate flavors of these pretty stuffed dishes.
All you have to do is check off your shopping list, and as for me, see you next Friday!
XO 🌰
