Pomegranate and Tahini Stuffed Pumpkin

I’ve been in a bit of stuffing mood lately! This week, it was pumpkin’s turn to get stuffed.

Ingredients:

1 small Jap or Kabocha pumpkin
1 cup course bourghal (cracked wheat)
1/2 cup sultanas
2 1/4 cups water or low-sodium vegetable broth
1 medium onion, diced
1/4 -1/2 cup additional water or low-sodium vegetable broth
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp tahini
2 tbsp pomegranate molasses
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger

Method:

Preheat oven to 200°C. Line a baking sheet with a silicon baking mat or baking paper.

Cut pumpkin in half and scoop out seeds. Place pumpkin, cut side up, on prepared baking sheet. Spread pumpkin seeds on baking sheet, in a single layer.

Place pumpkin and seeds in preheated oven. Bake pumpkin seeds for 10-15 minutes or until they have just begun to darken and become crunchy.

Bake pumpkin for 35-40 minutes or pumpkin flesh is soft enough to be easily pierced with a knife. Set aside to cool, then scoop out flesh with a spoon, leaving a 1 cm shell. Mash flesh roughly with a fork.

Meanwhile, place bourghal and sultanas in a small saucepan with 2 1/4 cups water or broth over high heat, bring to the boil, then reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

Place a medium non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat until it reaches the mercury ball stage (i.e. water flicked into the pan forms into a ball and rolls around the pan). Add onions and sauté until they are turning golden. Add garlic and sauté for 20 seconds. Carefully pour in 1/4 cup additional water or broth and stir vigorously to deglaze the pan. Continue sautéing until onions are tender.

Transfer cooked onions to a mixing bowl. Add pumpkin flesh, cooked bourghal, tahini, pomegranate molasses and spices and stir to combine.

Spoon mixture evenly into pumpkin shells, sprinkle with baked pumpkin seeds and return to the oven to reheat for 10 minutes.