Sunday 24 September 2023

Nigel Slater’s 10 best recipes over the past 30 years

 This is the link to the full article -


https://www.theguardian.com/food/2023/sep/24/nigel-slaters-10-best-recipes-over-the-past-30-years-at-the-observer?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter


This recipe below is my favourite. -


Roast pumpkin with couscous and date syrup

Nigel 30 Years Pumpkin Coriander Couscous
 Photograph: Jonathan Lovekin/The Observer

It would be a Herculean task to count how many recipes for roasted vegetables have appeared in this column. The first was in the opening one – red peppers with garlic and olive oil – and over the years there is barely a vegetable that hasn’t had its edges charred in my scorching oven.

There is no doubt that date syrup and za’atar turned up more regularly after my trips to the Middle East and in particular those to Lebanon. The slight tartness of the date syrup, not unlike pomegranate molasses, has much to offer the sweet, fudgy flesh of the roast pumpkin. Serves 4.

pumpkin 1kg (unpeeled weight)
olive oil 60ml
za’atar 1 tbsp
dried chilli flakes 1 tsp
couscous 65g
coriander 20g
parsley leaves 10g

For the dressing:
date syrup 4 tsp
garlic 1 clove
olive oil 5 tbsp
lemon juice of ½
grain mustard 1 tsp

Set the oven at 200C/gas mark 6. Peel the pumpkin, remove the fibres and seeds and discard, then cut the flesh into 2cm thick slices. Place the slices on a baking sheet. Mix together the olive oil, za’atar and dried chilli flakes, then spoon over the pumpkin. Bake for 35-40 minutes until tender and translucent.

Bring a kettle of water to the boil. Put the couscous in a bowl, pour over enough of the hot water to cover the couscous and set aside.

Make the dressing: mix the date syrup with the crushed garlic, olive oil, lemon juice and grain mustard.

Chop the coriander and the parsley. When the couscous has soaked up the water, run a fork through it to separate the grains, then fold in the chopped parsley and coriander and a seasoning of salt and black pepper.

Remove the pumpkin from the oven, place the couscous on a serving plate together with the pumpkin, then trickle over the date dressing.



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