Pattypan squash curry

I managed to buy the rest of the Christmas presents yesterday, so no more stress for me (apart from the cooking planning etc.). There won't be any elaborate presents this year, just some small trinkets, and I'm not really planning to stress about anything either. Next weekend we will be travelling to Finland to spend Christmas with my mother. Before that, there will still be a hectic work week. I'm quite ready for a few days off over Christmas and happy to see family.

The rain continues today and it's chillier with heavy wind, so what could be nicer than a warming curry and curling up on the sofa.

I made a Thai style pattypan squash curry last weekend and it was very nice. I still had one pattypan squash left from late summer, early autumn, and slowly wanted to cook something with it. I added fried oat block to the curry, which is a Finnish product, like tofu but made from oats. I also used some nice red chillies, onion, garlic, coconut milk and warming spices. I also made homemade naan bread on the side.

I thought that one of the naan breads looked like a hedgehog. Don't you think so too?

I'm not going to publish the recipe here, as I've made many similar curries before. Here are some of them for inspiration.

Golden Thai Curry

Thai Curry with fennel and beetroot tofu 

Pattypan squash and broccoli green curry 

Thai curry with spinach and tofu 

Fennel and cauliflower Thai curry 

Homemade naan bread 

Have a nice day!

Your VegHog

Pattypan squash stir fry

I made a simple and light stir fry. It's a vegan dish, where the pattypan squash replaces the noodles, and I would like to think that this dish is also fairly healthy. There is a little bit of chopping and cutting to be done, but otherwise it's a quick and easy dish. I exaggerated slightly with the chilli, as it happened to be a very hot one and I even left the seeds in it. Nevertheless the spiciness I was able to enjoy this dish.

Have a look at my recipe below.

Ingredients

1 pattypan squash

200 g smoked tofu

1 large carrot

1 large onion

2 garlic cloves

1 green chilli

1 cm fresh ginger (similar amount to garlic when chopped)

2 tbsp vegetable oil

2 tbsp sesame oil or to taste

3 tbsp soy sauce or to taste

2 tbsp Shaoxing rice wine or to taste

Method

Cut the pattypan squash into thin strings with a vegetable cutter.

Also prep the other vegetables: chop the carrot and onion into thin strips, and chop the garlic, chilli and ginger finely.

Cut the tofu into small dices and cook them in hot oil until firm and golden brown and set to side.

Quickly fry the carrot stripes in hot oil and set to side. Do the same to the onion.

Start cooking the garlic, chilli and ginger in a pan in vegetable oil. Then add the pattypan squash, pre-fried carrot and onion and the tofu dices.

Pour the sesame oil, soy sauce and Shaoxing rice wine into the pan and cook for a few minutes. Taste the seasoning and add anything that is needed more. The pattypan squash doesn't need very much cooking, such some seasoning through the sauce and most of the other components are pre-fried.

Serve instantly and enjoy!

Your VegHog

Tacos with roasted pattypan squash and soya mince chilli

I really love tacos with various vegetable fillings, so I made some again. I filled these taco shells with roasted pattypan squash, soya mince chilli and cheese. I also got the opportunity to taste my new smoky chilli paste with them, Gran Luchito, which was really good. That little jar is going to disappear in no time. 

Here is my taco recipe:

Ingredients

1 pattypan squash

Olive oil

1 large onion

4 cloves garlic

1 can black beans

400 g tomatoes

Ground cumin

Ground coriander

Chilli flakes

Smoked paprika

Cocoa powder

Tomato purée

Fresh coriander

100 g grated cheese

½ cup dried soya mince

12 taco shells

Method

Cut the pattypan squash into cubes, brush them with olive oil and roast in the oven until done with roasting marks.

Chop the onion, garlic and tomatoes. Cook the onion and garlic in olive oil until soft, add the black beans and ground cumin, ground coriander, chilli flakes and smoked paprika. Stir for a couple of minutes and then add the tomatoes. Let simmer under lid for about 30 minutes. Add the cocoa powder, tomato purée and a little bit of the grated cheese into the pot.

Cook the dried soya mince as instructed on the packet. Mine needs to be boiled in water for a couple of minutes and then it can be pan fried. Add the mince after the frying into the chilli.

Also add the roasted pattypan squash cubes into the chilli, or keep them separated, if preferred.

Put the mixture into the taco shells, add some cheese and fresh coriander on the top and bake in the oven until the cheese has melted.

Enjoy!

Your VegHog

Pattypan squash spelt risotto

Maybe you already saw this dish in my lunchbox on Tuesday and here is the full recipe of my pattypan squash spelt risotto. I love the look of pattypan squashes, their shape is so quirky. Unfortunately I don't often find them in my local shops, but now my local health food store had a few of them in a great condition, so of course I had to buy them. The taste of this squash is quite mild and I think that they are closer to courgettes by taste and texture. That makes them quite versatile to use. I found this pattypan squash spelt risotto quite tasty, have a look how I made it.

Ingredients

1 pattypan squash

2 tbsp olive oil

2 onions

3 garlic cloves

1 red bell pepper

25 g butter

250 ml pearled spelt

100 ml dry white wine

1 l vegetable stock

50 g vegetarian pasta cheese

Sage

Basil

Salt

Ground black pepper

Method

Peel and cut the pattypan squash into small cubes. Brush them with olive oil and roast in the oven until done with darker roasting marks.

Chop the onions and garlic finely and also cut the bell pepper into cubes.

Start cooking the onions, garlic and pepper in olive oil, and once they are soft, add the butter and pearled spelt into the pan.

Add the white wine and let the pearled spelt absorb it. Then add about the third of the vegetable stock and simmer under lid. Keep adding more stock whenever needed.

Towards the end, add the roasted pattypan squash and grated pasta cheese to the pan, and season with sage, basil, salt and ground black pepper.

Enjoy!

Your VegHog