Author Notes
One of my favourite vegetables is pumpkin, when roasted it is earthy yet sweet. It’s perfectly paired with capsicum, and the creamy haloumi gives this a little twist from the normal parmesan topping. The star of this dish is the chorizo crumb. Salty, crunchy and so moreish, this recipe makes more than you need but it stores well in the fridge ready to be added to anything from vegetables to chicken to sea food. It is very addictive! To make things easy I’ve used char grilled capsicum from a jar, but feel free to make your own if you feel inclined —Liliana
Ingredients
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1/2
small butternut pumpkin
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3 tablespoons
olive oil
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1 tablespoon
ground cumin
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salt
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1/2 teaspoon
chilli flakes
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1/4 cup
char grilled capsicum
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400 grams
Penne pasta
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100 grams
Haloumi
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1 handful
fresh parsley, chopped
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freshly ground black pepper
- Chorizo Crumb
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3 - 4
slices stale sour dough or other crusty bread
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1
fresh Chorizo, skin removed, finely chopped
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1
garlic clove, peeled and chopped
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3 tablespoons
olive oil
Directions
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Place the pumpkin in a single layer onto a large oven tray. Drizzle with 1 – 2 tbsp olive oil and scatter over the cumin and a pinch of salt. Toss to coat and cook in a hot oven for 20 minutes, or until pumpkin is cooked and starting to crisp on the edges. Remove.
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Place a large frypan over medium-high heat and add ¼ cup olive oil. Cook the sliced garlic and chilli flakes, stirring, until fragrant. Add the capsicum and pumpkin and stir to combine. Set aside.
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Once the pasta is cooked, drain and reserve ½ a cup full of the pasta water. Return the frypan with the pumpkin back to high heat and add the drained pasta, parsley and a a good grinding of black pepper. Toss everything together, adding a little of the reserved pasta water if mixture is dry. Top with just cooked haloumi and a generous sprinkling of chorizo crumb.
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To make the Chorizo Crumb, place the bread and chorizo onto a large oven tray in a single layer and bake in a moderate oven for 15 minutes or until the bread is hard and dry and the chorizo is starting to crisp on the edges. Remove and allow to cool completely. Once cool tear up the bread, the chorizo and any oil that has seeped from the chorizo while cooking, the garlic clove and rind into a food processor. Pulse to form rough breadcrumbs. Transfer to a non-stick frypan, add the 3 tbsp of olive oil and cook over medium – high heat, stirring, until golden. Remove and set aside to cool.
I am an author, cook, traveller and proud Mama of two boys. I have published three books - 'Easy Home Cooking Italian Style', 'Food for Sharing Italian Style', and 'The Sweet Life - Easy Home Baking and Sweet Treats.' My books reflect my Italian heritage. I also write fiction and feature articles.
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