Miso Honey Glazed Pumpkin with Quinoa {gluten free}

Butternut pumpkin is roasted in a miso honey and sesame oil glaze on a bed of quinoa. The quinoa becomes beautifully crispy at the edges to contrast with the soft pumpkin. Serve with your favourite steamed greens.

Food is such a subjective thing. What one person loves, another loathes.

For example, take my husband and I. While we agree on almost everything else, there are foods that I love that he hates, and vice-a-versa.

Miso is a prime example. I love it dearly, however my husband refers to it as “that horrible stinky stuff”. I actually don’t think miso stinks. I love that wonderful yeasty scent that reminds me of baking bread. I love it in dressings, in stir fries, and in this glaze.

The inspiration for this recipe came from Donna Hay’s Fresh and Light magazine. I know there are many who have snarked about Donna Hay releasing a health oriented magazine, but for me, food is about moderation. You can’t be one thing all the time. There are days I love and crave a rich dense and insanely over the top chocolate cake, days I crave a healthy colourful salad and days where I crave something with a little spice like this Moroccan Roasted Carrot Salad.

Food has always been for me about what I love to eat. If I don’t enjoy it I don’t eat it, simple as that. Life is too short to eat food that you don’t enjoy eating. There are SO MANY wonderful and amazing foods out there, and there has never been a time in our history where we have had such a wonderfully abundant choice, it seems a shame to waste it eating things we don’t enjoy simply because we feel pressure to eat a certain way by media (both social and of the news variety).

So while this is something I know my husband would never in a million years contemplate eating, it something for me to savour and enjoy on my own. Which in some small way can make it all the more special.

Miso Honey Pumpkin with Quinoa

Inspired by Donna Hay's Steamed Miso Salmon with Brown Rice from Donna Hay Fresh and Light

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Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour

Servings: 4

Author: Jennifer Schmidt

Ingredients

• 1 cup quinoa
• 600 g butternut pumpkin 1 1/3 pounds
• 1/4 cup white miso paste
• 2 tbs mirin
• 1 tbs soy sauce
• 1 tbs honey
• 1 tbs rice wine vinegar
• 2 tsp toasted sesame oil
• TO SERVE:
• steamed snow peas or edamame
• lime wedges
• leaves coriander (cilantro) cilantro
• 1 tbs black sesame seeds

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 200 celsius (400 Fahrenheit).
• Place the quinoa in a fine mesh sieve and rinse well under cold running water. This helps remove the bitter coating on the quinoa. Drain and place a saucepan with 1 cup of water. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat to low and cook for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the quinoa is tender. When the quinoa is cooked leave covered until you are ready to use it.
• Peel the pumpkin and cut into 2cm (3/4 inch) thick disks. I suggest using the top part of the pumpkin to avoid the seeded section. Cut each disk in half.
• In a bowl whisk the miso, mirin, soy, honey, rice wine vinegar and sesame oil until combined. Toss the pumpkin in the glaze. Take four large pieces of baking paper and divide the quinoa between each sheet. Top with the glazed pumpkin, ensuring the quinoa is well covered by the pumpkin. Fold over the edges of the baking paper to cover the pumpkin, making sure it is well sealed. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the pumpkin is tender.
• Serve with steamed greens, a wedge of lime and coriander leaves.

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