Sandy pumpkin is a completely vegetarian, very easy oven-baked recipe to serve as a side dish. It’s very flavorful, appetizing and light. You can prepare it to accompany either red or white meats; or to fill bruschetta or a savory tart.
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Budget-friendly
- Preparation time: 30 Minutes
- Portions: 3-4 people
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter and Spring
Ingredients
- 1.1 lb Pumpkin (already cleaned)
- to taste Bread crumbs (can be gluten-free)
- to taste Extra virgin olive oil
- to taste Fine salt
- to taste Pepper
- to taste Rosemary and sage
Preparation
I recommend using only fresh pumpkin, not frozen, because the result would unfortunately not be satisfactory.
After removing the rind, seeds and fibers, cut the pumpkin into cubes that are more or less the same size for even cooking.
Wash, dry and finely chop both the sage (about 3-4 small leaves) and the rosemary needles.
Preheat the oven to its highest temperature.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Meanwhile, place the pumpkin cubes in a large bowl and pour in 2–3 generous tablespoons of olive oil, enough to perfectly coat all the cubes.
Mix well, add the bread crumbs, rosemary and sage and continue to toss until the pumpkin is completely coated.
Transfer the pumpkin to the baking sheet, without overlapping the cubes, and bake on the middle rack for about 10–12 minutes if cooking with both top and bottom heat in a convection oven; otherwise about 20 minutes with heat only from the bottom.
Finally, pass the cubes under the grill (broiler) for 2–3 minutes to achieve a delicious crust.
Season with salt and pepper to taste. You can enjoy them either hot or cold.
The cubes will be firm and compact when they come out of the oven; as they cool down, they will become softer.
