BUTTERNUT 4 WAYS

As recently seen on my instagram, I challenged myself in the kitchen – both budget wise as well as creatively. I’ve never been the type of cook to see ingredients and bring them to life without the guidance of  A. my mom or B. a recipe. Because I’m super busy, I need easy, quick, healthy and delicious meals for Lloyd and I. Please don’t fool yourself and think my children eat what we eat (yes we are one of those households where I make my kids their food & something different for Lloyd & I). All these recipes ticked all the boxes in terms of convenience, nutritional & healthy. Yay!

I did a little research (mostly via Pinterest) into different butternut recipes, and bought ingredients that could be used in more than one dish and it was really as easy as that.

I hope this inspires you to challenge yourself, try something new and explore a little in the kitchen. Please pop me a DM on insta or comment on this blog to let me know if this has been helpful or better yet, send me pics of your creations – I’d love to see what you come up with!

Recipe 1: butternut & halloumi bowl

Ingredients / Method:

• Roast butternut with olive oil, garlic, herbs & spices.  (i used 2 full ones, as i knew i would use left overs for Lloyds lunch or the next evening’s meal) I cant seem to get enough of Ina Parma’s range of spices, they’re the best! Thats always on my lift for my family to bring over from SA.
• Block of halloumi – slice & pan fry until golden brown on either side (no need to add oil or anything)
• Salad greens: watercress, raw baby marrow (courgette’s) shavings, avocado cubes, fresh mint
• Additional options: sunflower seeds, sweet chilli sauce, nuts, caramelised onions

Recipe 2: butternut & sweet potato salad

Ingredients / Method:

• I roasted some sweet potatoes to combine them with the roast butternut from the previous night – using this as the base of the salad.
• Salad greens: raw baby marrow (courgette’s) shavings &  fresh mint
• Additional options: pomegranates, sunflower seeds, dried chilli flakes
• Drizzle with olive oil

Recipe 3: butternut & blueberry salad

Ingredients / Method:

• Roast butternut with olive oil, garlic, herbs & spices – I continued to use the left overs from dinner 1 & 2.
• Salad greens: watercress, avocado slices, fresh mint
• Diced apple
• I added toasted tortilla wrap triangles in for Lloyd – just cut up & pan cook them (no oil needed)
• Additional options: blueberries, shaved almonds
• Dressing: (this has got to be one of my favourites) I used tahini (2 TBS), maple syrup (1 TBS), lemon juice (2 tps), pinch sea salt

Recipe 4: butternut & chicken salad

Ingredients / Method:

• Roast butternut and baby marrow (courgette) with olive oil, garlic, herbs & spices.
• Salad greens: watercress, sliced avocado, fresh mint
• Chicken breast cubes, pan fried
• Drizzle with olive oil
• Additional options: sunflower seeds, sweet chilli sauce, nuts, caramelised onions