Garam Masala Mashed Pumpkin with Harissa Black Lentils

The earthy harissa-flavoured beluga lentils go so perfectly with the rich and creamy mashed pumpkin, which makes a nourishing and delicious meal to have on a cold winter day!
I prefer to make my own pumpkin puree by roasting them in oven until very soft, then simply process them into a puree. But you can use canned variety too. Black lentils are also known as beluga lentils since they resemble beluga caviar, the most prized of all caviar varieties. They hold their shape exceptionally well when cooked, very much like French lentils (aka Le Puy lentils). Feel free to use other types of lentils instead if you can't find them.

Garam Masala Pumpkin	Harrisa Black Lentil
1-1.2 kg Hokkaido pumpkin 1 tbsp Olive oil 1 Large garlic clove, minced 1 White onion, diced 1 tbsp Garam masala 1 tsp Cumin powder 1/2 tsp Kala namak black salt 100 g Coconut cream	250 g Organic black lentils 600 ml Water 1 tsp Kala namak black salt 1 tbsp Homemade harissa (more if you like it very spicy) 1 tbsp Pumpkin seed oil 1/2 tbsp Balsamic 1 Small red onion, peeled and thinly sliced 1 tbsp Chopped carrots 1-2 Garlic cloves, minced 2 tsp Fresh thyme sprigs, chopped 2 tbsp Chives, chopped plus more to serve Salt and pepper to taste Toasted pine nuts or hazelnuts to serve

Garam Masala Pumpkin

Harrisa Black Lentil

1-1.2 kg Hokkaido pumpkin
1 tbsp Olive oil
1 Large garlic clove, minced
1 White onion, diced
1 tbsp Garam masala
1 tsp Cumin powder
1/2 tsp Kala namak black salt
100 g Coconut cream

250 g Organic black lentils
600 ml Water
1 tsp Kala namak black salt
1 tbsp Homemade harissa (more if you like it very spicy)
1 tbsp Pumpkin seed oil
1/2 tbsp Balsamic
1 Small red onion, peeled and thinly sliced
1 tbsp Chopped carrots
1-2 Garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp Fresh thyme sprigs, chopped
2 tbsp Chives, chopped plus more to serve
Salt and pepper to taste
Toasted pine nuts or hazelnuts to serve

Preheat oven to 200C/400F. Cut the pumpkin in half and scoop out the seeds using a spoon or an icecream scoop. Brush the inside with a little bit of olive oil and place in a baking tray. Roast for about 45 minutes, or until the flesh is very soft.
Meanwhile, cook the lentils. Place the lentils and water into a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, add in black salt, then reduce heat and let simmer uncovered for about 20 minutes, or until lentils are cooked and almost no water remains.
Remove from the oven and let cool to the room temperature. Transfer the pumpkin flesh to a food processor and process until very smooth. Set aside.
Heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Once hot, add the minced garlic and onion and cook until onions starts to caramelize, about 10 minutes. Add in garam masala, cumin powder and kala namak. Stir briefly. Add in coconut cream and pumpkin puree. Stir to mix everything together. Adjust the heat to low and cook for 1-2 minutes. Turn off the heat and keep warm.
Add harissa chilli paste, pumpkin seed oil, balsamic, sliced red onion, carrot, minced garlic,and the fresh herbs to the lentils. Toss to combine everything together and taste and season. To serve, spoon some mashed pumpkin on a plate and top with the spicy lentils. Drizzle some pumpkin seed oil atop. Add chopped chives, and toasted pine nuts over.

33 comments:

Tom 14/1/23 22:26: ...a nice break from meat.
Lola Martínez 14/1/23 22:29: Me gusta la calabaza hokkaido tanto como la lenteja beluga, la harissa siempre que no sea muy picante. La combinación es buenisima.
Un beso.
kathyinozarks 14/1/23 23:14: Sounds and looks delicious
Cooking Julia 14/1/23 23:44: This dish looks delicious with pumplin and lentils, two ingredients that I often cook!
Christine 15/1/23 00:29: Yummy
Mbul Kecil 15/1/23 00:55: lentils are nutricious meal for breakfast. I like your pumpkin pure texture Angie...very soft and creammy....Yummy!!
Brian's Home Blog 15/1/23 01:42: That's very creative and it sounds great!
J.P. Alexander 15/1/23 02:17: Se ve muy rico y nutritivo. Te mando un beso.
Balvinder 15/1/23 02:26: The mashed pumpkin sounds flavorful with garam masala
roentare 15/1/23 08:02: Lentils would give me gout. But I was curious about the black salt in your recipe. What is that?
Angie's Recipes 15/1/23 10:47: @roentare Kala namak, aka "Himalayan black salt" is a kiln-fired rock salt..it smell and tastes like boiled egg yolks.
Rose world 15/1/23 12:40: Only tasted lentil in Indian food. Not a common food in my kitchen.
ashok 15/1/23 12:59: Sounds Indian :)
DEZMOND 15/1/23 13:22: Sounds lovely as I love both pumpkin and lentils. The only thing that freaks me out is that metal basin because it reminds me of the basins people use for washing feet LOL
Anonymous 15/1/23 14:15: Angie, this looks delicious and very heart healthy. I will definitely be making your recipe. Bernadette
Anonymous 15/1/23 14:23: It's Judee- The colors and flavors in this recipe look and sound amazing!
My name is Erika. 15/1/23 14:49: I was wondering it you added anything to the pumpkin to "sweeten" it up a bit. Coconut cream must make it taste amazing. This looks yummy. And different from anything I have ever seen also. I also want to mention you get the most artistic photos of your food too.hugs-Erika
thepaintedapron.com 15/1/23 15:10: Wow, such a creative recipe, again full of ingredients I'm not familiar with. It looks and sounds really good!
Marianela Beauty Tips 15/1/23 16:04: It looks delicious .Thanks for sharing.
I invite you to visit my last post. Happy new year!
Bill 15/1/23 17:28: Sounds good.
Jeff the Chef 15/1/23 18:48: You make such interesting food, Angie! Mashed pumpkin! And I love garam masala.
speedy70 15/1/23 18:48: Un perfetto piatto unico, molto gustoso!!!
Grace 15/1/23 20:37: Your recipes and ideas, Angie, are great!
If I don't have some of your ingredients, I substitute or adapt them. There are not always the usual ingredients in your country.
Always thanks!!!
Very good week!!!🤗
Tus recetas e ideas, Angie, son geniales!
En casos de no tener algunos de sus ingredientes, lo sustituyo o adapto. No siempre hay los ingredientes usuales en tu país.
Siempre gracias!!
Muy buena semana!!🤗
Chef Mimi 16/1/23 01:18: This is incredible. Such fabulous textures and flavors. A perfect lunch for me.
Veronica Lee 16/1/23 03:52: I'd love to try this. Yummm!
Eha 16/1/23 04:42: Like your use of garam masala which I love but too often buy instead of going the extra few minutes to make at home ! Cannot wait to see how this goes with the pumpkin which actually is not one of my favourite vegetables, but . . . :) !!!
Rainbow Evening 16/1/23 09:54: roasting pumpkins smell good....
your food looks so yummy
Gingi 16/1/23 20:58: Yes! I have autumn on the brain and I am in love with anything pumpkin! haha! - http://www.domesticgeekgirl.com
Paola 16/1/23 21:02: Qua da noi le lenticchie mangiate il primo giorno dell'anno .. portano fortuna! bella la tua ricetta come sempre.
Paolina 17/1/23 15:55: La presentazione è spettacolare, il piatto è super!
tigerfish 17/1/23 17:18: Taste and texture of homemade pumpkin puree is much better than canned ones. Plus there is a variety of pumpkins to choose from to make puree at home. My favorite is still kabocha pumpkin
The Happy Whisk 18/1/23 20:02: Yum! And thanks for the congrats on my new day job!
wattoote 20/1/23 19:40: it looks like so good