Title: Butternut Squash And Spinach With Herbed Feta Crumble
Categories: Casseroles
Yield: 6 Servings
4 tb Olive oil
4 Spring onions; finely sliced
4 cl Garlic; finely sliced
2 ts Ground cumin
1 ts Ground cinnamon
1/2 ts Ground nutmeg
1/2 ts Chilli flakes
1 sm Butternut squash; in 2 to 3
-cm chunks
800 g Chopped tomatoes (2 cans)
500 ml Vegetable stock; up to 600
-ml
400 g Can chickpeas
350 g Fresh spinach
MMMMM--------------------------TOPPING-------------------------------
200 g Plain flour
100 g Butter
200 g Feta; diced
1 bn Parsley; finely chopped
Crumble doesn't have to be sweet. Here s a cheesy, herb-flecked
version that you can adapt for more or less any stew or casserole.
You could swap the feta for cheddar or gruyere, add a few pinches of
spices or add a handful or breadcrumbs for a slightly lighter result.
Heat the oil in a large casserole over a low heat, add the spring
onions and fry for 3 to 4 minutes, until they begin to soften. Add
the garlic, cumin, cinnamon, nutmeg, and chilli and cook for 2
minutes, stirring all the while. Once the spices are fragrant and the
garlic sizzling, throw in the squash, chopped tomatoes and stock,
then put a lid on the pan and leave it all to simmer on a low heat
for 15 minutes.
When the squash has started to soften, take the lid off and leave it
to bubble for another 5 minutes to reduce the sauce a little. Add the
chickpeas and spinach, stir everything together to wilt the leaves and
remove the pan from the heat. Let it cool a little while you preheat
the oven to 200 C/400 F/gas mark 6 and prepare the crumble.
For the crumble topping, measure the flour into a large bowl, then
add the butter and half the feta in small cubes. Rub the fat and
cheese into the flour between your fingertips until there are no
visible chunks left, then stir in the rest of the feta and the
parsley.
Sprinkle the crumble mixture over the filling (if you don't have an
ovenproof casserole, first decant the butternut squash stew from its
pan into a 2 to 3 litre oven dish). Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until
the sauce is bubbling up through the crumble and the chunks of feta
are blushing golden brown. Serve straight away with plenty of green
vegetables.
