This recipe is a true goosenarg concoction. For those of you who don’t know the term, goosenarg means the bits and pieces in your fridge that need using up, and aren’t obvious pan-fellows. This recipe came from just those humble beginnings, but was a big hit with my 8 year old daughter. The fact that quinoa is a complete protein (meaning it contains all of the essential amino acids required for nutritional health) was a bonus. Quinoa was previously only available at health food stores but can now be found in most supermarkets. It’s a wholegrain, originally from South America. Please don’t be put off by the ‘health food’ label – even my lentil-adverse boyfriend begrudgingly admits to liking it.
Serves 4 as a side dish
Ingredients
- A large glug of olive oil
- 4 large courgettes
- Salt and pepper
- About 75g dried weight cooked quinoa (I used about a cup’s worth of leftover cooked quinoa)
- Half a lemon
Method
Preheat oven to 220ºC, gas mark 7.
Chop the courgettes by top and tailing them, halving them lengthwise, then again, and then slicing them into 1/2 inch pieces (or thereabouts). Taste a piece raw. If it tastes bitter put the courgettes in a colander sprinkled with Maldon sea salt flakes, and weighed down with a small plate, for 20 mins. You will need to put a plate underneath the colander as well to catch the bitter juices that will come out of the courgettes. After 20 mins rinse the courgettes and dry on kitchen roll.
Toss the courgettes in the olive oil in a roasting tin big enough to accomodate all the courgette in one layer, and season with salt and pepper. Put into the hot oven for about an hour, or until they are browned and sticky from caramelisation. Leave to cool.
Put into a bowl with the quinoa that has been cooked according to the instructions on the packet. Squeeze over the lemon to taste, and mix well.
And that’s it. I served it with a tuna and bean, and a tomato and basil salad.
