On The Shire & Squashes

Pumpkin Ice Cream with Nutmeg Chantilly (and all my favourite pumpkin recipes)

I had some folk from the Westcountry here this week to cook with me, which filled my sentimental heart with joy. I can’t tell you what a tonic it was to eulogise about dairy products and the Devon hills for a whole morning; I could have gone on all day. They brought me a hunk of homemade guanciale, and a pot of perfectly soft-set homemade Blackberry jam. Sometimes people really are the best.

It made me feel all misty-eyed for home, and tea and scones and good bacon and butter and all the little cherry-picked bits of Britain I am privileged enough to feel quaint about simply because I now live elsewhere and it is a universally acknowledged fact that anything that is different to what you have at home is infinitely more interesting and exotic. My one-year-old son provides daily proof of this, as he greedily steals whole bananas from his friends at nursery, whilst at home he pushes away my proffered peeled fruit with a tiny scowl of total disgust.

When we come home to the place that has become mine, and has always been Lorenzo’s, the little, unremarkable, slightly sleepy and scruffy town of Baratili San Pietro just outside Oristano, Lorenzo always sings the song of the shire from Lord of the Rings. You know the one. The one that opens the scene when Gandalf trundles into Hobbiton (eerily I grew up in a town called Holbeton, which really was identical), and you see all the little hobbits going about their hobbit business. And it’s weirdly apt. There is something a little Shire-like about Baratili, cut off from the world, with its own, slightly ancient community, the men still in flat-caps buzzing around in their Apes, or in their ortos leaning on a hoe, scowling habitually just as one hobbit does when he sees Gandalf (a foreigner!) pass. In a tiny town where everyone has known each other for generations, most of the time this scowl is a physical manifestation of an inner thought process which goes something like this: who in the hell is that? Madonna my eye-sight is failing. Is it Mauro’s daughter-in-law? There are plenty of scowls, which will just as quickly melt into wide smiles and waves, and my days are punctuated by a hundred belted ‘CIAO’s!’ whenever I pass anyone, for without really knowing how, I have become part of this tiny town, The Shire, and when I come home here I hum the theme tune too.

So speaking of the Shire, it is Halloween, and not wanting to stick to twee tradition and dress the Tiny Saint as a spider, skeleton or pumpkin, which seem to be about the only options available, we decided (and of course he will love us later in life for this) to dress him as a hobbit, being that he sort of looks like one anyway, with his bright little eyes, button nose, bare feet and dirty blonde curls. My days are now spent in two important activities; putting together the perfect Hobbit costume and trying to bake and puree pumpkin into everything.

The Hobbit costume is relatively simple; we found an ivy leaf broach, I have to make a quick green cape, he already has numerous corduroy trousers and I procured him a little red waistcoat second hand (Godbless Vinted). Then he will, of course, be suitably armed for battle as Lorenzo found him a sword and a stick – or perhaps it’s really a Staff (I should mention at this point that Lorenzo, whilst a Halloween sceptic, is a LOTR super-fan). The pumpkin part of things is more tricky. Lorenzo doesn’t really get pumpkin. He says it’s too sweet for savoury scenarios, and too savoury for sweet ones. I think he is completely insane. I adore pumpkin, in sweet, savoury, aesthetic or onomatopoeic scenarios. It is always welcome in my home, I wonder if the name in Italian name - Zucca - has anything to do with zucchero, the word for sugar, considering how sweet it is, though a brief search would suggest no. Either way, there can be no denying that the deep caramel and pecan sweetness of a good Zucca is a delicious addition to both sweet and savoury recipes.

Now for the varieties: the two most hallowed Zucca/Pumpkin varieties as far as I am concerned are the Onion (also known as Red Kuri) which my market seller described as tasting of ‘nocciole’, or hazelnuts, and the Delica pumpkin, which is undeniably beautiful too, with its deep green outside and paler orange interior. These two varieties, which are luckily readily available here, are the most deeply flavoured and have some of the lowest water content and least fibrous flesh, meaning that when they are cooked correctly their flesh is creamy, sweet and nutty, and there is no watery stringiness in sight. Once cooked – ideally baked, sautéed or roasted to maximise their sweetness - they can be stirred into anything; a creamy risotto, a soup topped with blue cheese, a sweet-salty pasta sauce, a delicious filling for ravioli or even a surprisingly caramelly gelato for Halloween. In savoury scenarios they pair particularly well with salty or piquant flavours (think blue cheese, sheep’s cheese, goat’s cheese, taleggio, capers, pickled shallots, agrodolce). They also pair particularly well with any of the brassica family (think cavolo nero or winter cabbages, their slight bitterness counteracts the sweetness perfectly). In sweet scenarios match them with anything creamy, nutty, caramelly or spiced. In both sweet and savoury instances squash & pumpkins are the natural bedfellows of numerous nuts (hazelnuts, pine nuts, chestnuts, walnuts…) which highlight their own inherent nutty flavours. 

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The Tiny Saint’s nursery sent them all to the pumpkin patch to pick their pumpkins, and so we will be carving some too to use as lanterns (see how versatile the pumpkin is!). And I made this pumpkin gelato to eat after pumpkin and blue cheese pizza with his little nursery pals this evening. It’s a remake of an ice cream I always used to make at Ellory, the now-deceased (RIP) restaurant where I was pastry chef in London Fields. It was one of the best things I ever made there, though I can’t claim to have invented it, my head chef had eaten it somewhere else and asked me to recreate it. We served it, very simply, with a nutmeg Chantilly and a little rye tuile, and it was bliss. Luxurious, caramelly, creamy, and the perfect pale apricot colour. This version is more simple and homely, but just as delicious.

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And so, as Halloween approaches, squash and/or spider outfit sceptics notwithstanding - The Tiny Saint will go to the ball as Frodo Baggins, or perhaps Samwise, because I’ve never liked Frodo too much anyway (surely everyone knows the real hero is Sam?). And then we’ll eat more pumpkin filled foods after, and Lorenzo will grin and bear it, because as far as I’m concerned a squash is for life, not just for Halloween.

And here – as a special Halloween gift - is a round-up of all of my favourite pumpkin recipes. One pumpkin to bind them all.....

Pumpkin Gelato with Nutmeg Chantilly

Make the base the night before so it matures over time before churning the next day. The whipped cream topping is optional, but I adore the combination of cream with ice cream. The nutmeg adds a little welcome autumnal spice, and works so well with pumpkin. You could use cinnamon, cardamom or even coffee or cocoa powder – all of which work well - if you prefer.  

I had one medium Delica pumpkin and it made enough for this ice cream and a couple of portions of risotto.  

Makes enough to serve 8

4 egg yolks

500 ml double cream

250ml whole milk

120g Light brown sugar

180g Pumpkin puree

Half a teaspoon of salt

To serve:

A few tbsp of double cream per serving, softly whipped

Freshly grated Nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 180 and halve your pumpkin down the middle. Scoop out the seeds and save them for toasting and eating another time. Place the halved pumpkin cut side down on the baking tray (lined with baking paper) and roast for around 40 minutes to an hour, until completely soft. Scoop out the flesh and discard the skin.

Whisk the egg yolks with the sugar and salt and set aside. Heat the milk and cream in saucepan over a medium heat until it comes to a scald. Once just at boil, pour over the egg mixture in a steady stream, whisking constantly. Return the mixture to the pan and cook, over a gentle heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Cook for a good few minutes, until the custard has slightly thickened and coats the back of a wooden spoon. Strain and set aside.

Blitz the cooled 180g of pumpkin puree with the custard until smooth before placing in the fridge overnight.

The next day churn in your ice cream machine.

Serve with some softly whipped cream and a few scrapings of fresh nutmeg.

 Spiced Pumpkin Cake with Orange Mascarpone Icing from Dolce 

I love pumpkin in both sweet and savoury recipes, and I was delighted to discover that it is often baked into cakes in Italy. The grated flesh gives an earthy depth, sweetness and moistness to the cake as well as being undeniably autumnal. This Torta di Zucca is the cavallo di battaglia of one of my friend’s aunts, who serves it un-frosted, though I love this rich, creamy icing so much I am loathe to part with it, however good the cake may be on its own.

This cake is also a riff on one of the classics of the English tea table – Carrot Cake –which has always been a favourite, and which is so good it deserves to be enjoyed any and everywhere in the world. 

Note: you can use any sweet eating pumpkin/squash for this, such as butternut, crown prince or onion squash.

Makes 1 x double-layered cake, Serves 8-10

250g 00 flour

120g butter, at room temperature

70ml light olive/seed oil

230g light brown sugar

1/2 tsp of salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

3 tsp baking powder

3 eggs

zest and juice of 1 orange

200g pumpkin, peeled and finely grated

For the icing:

Zest of 1 orange & 3 tsp juice

250g mascarpone

180g full-fat Philadelphia cream cheese

100g icing sugar

Prepare two sandwich cake (22cm) tins by buttering them and lining the base with baking paper. Preheat the oven to 180.

Soak the grated pumpkin in the orange zest and juice.

Beat the butter and oil together with the sugar until pale, smooth and fluffy. It will be a light caffe latte colour. Add the eggs in one at a time beating well after each addition until they are fully incorporated.

Add the salt, cinnamon, flour, baking powder and finally the pumpkin and orange mix, and stir to combine.

Spoon the batter into the prepared tins, dividing it equally between the two and smoothing the top, and bake in the oven until risen and golden, and a spaghetti skewer comes out clean, around 25-30 minutes.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes before turning out of the tins and leaving to cool completely on a wire rack.

Beat the ingredients for the icing together and then spread half over the base of the cake, sandwiching it with the top half, and then the remainder on the top.

Decorate with sprinkles or orange zest, as you see fit. Some slithers of candied orange would also be nice.

Pumpkin, Dark Chocolate and Clementine Loaf from Wild Figs 

1 medium sized squash – use a Delica or Onion squash, other varieties tend to be too watery. Butternut would also be ok.

230g squash puree (from above squash – see method)

230ml olive oil

230g plain flour

3 tsp baking powder

Grated zest of 3 clementines or 1 large orange

1 tsp salt

230g sugar

3 eggs

180g dark (70%) chocolate, roughly chopped

For the glaze:

150g icing sugar

1.5 tbsp orange/clementine juice

1.5 tbsp olive oil

Orange zest/pomegranate seeds to decorate

Heat the oven to 220. Cut the squash down the middle, scoop out the seeds and place it cut-side-down on a non-stick baking tray (you can line with baking paper if you prefer – there may be some sticky caramelised squash bits to scrub). Roast until totally soft, around 30-45 minutes (it will magically steam itself).

Scrape the flesh away from the skin and puree in a blender until smooth.

Measure out 230g of the puree (use the rest as you see fit) and let it cool.

Lower the oven heat to 170 and butter a large bundt tin well. (Paint it with melted butter and a pastry brush to make sure you get every crevice, or you can use a baking spray if you prefer).

Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together in a bowl. In a separate bowl whisk the oil, sugar, squash puree, clementine zest and eggs together. Make a well in the centre of the flour mixture and whisk in the wet ingredients until you have a smooth batter. Stir in the chocolate pieces.

Pour into the prepared loaf tin and bake for up to 1 and a half hours, until an inserted skewer comes out clean.

Allow to cool before turning out.

Mix the orange juice with the icing sugar until you have a glaze the consistency of honey. Whisk in the oil and then pour over the cooled cake. Decorate with pom seeds or orange zest, or with extra chocolate shards/cacao nibs.

Pumpkin & Ricotta Ravioli with Brown Sage Butter

Pumpkin, Ricotta and Chilli Ravioli with Brown Butter & Sage

One of the few occasions I make fresh egg pasta, but very much worth the effort. The sweet, earthy, vivid orange filling is pure comfort. If you wanted to gild the lily further (something I generally condone) you could add some toasted pecans or walnuts on top.

Whilst this is one of the more involved recipes in the book, the ravioli freeze brilliantly, and if you make a large batch you can whip out a few every time you have unexpected guests.

Serves 6

1 batch fresh egg pasta dough

1 large pumpkin (I like to use onion squash)

6 tbsp olive oil

2 dried chillies, crushed, or 1 scant tsp of chilli flakes

Salt

Zest of 1 lemon

80g grated parmesan

250g ricotta

To serve:

150g butter

8-10 sage leaves

40g grated parmesan

Pinch salt  

For the Ravioli:

Cut the squash into wedges and season well with the salt, chilli and olive oil. Roast in the oven at 180 until soft and caramelised, about 40-50 minutes. Leave to cool a little. 

Mash the cooked squash in a bowl with a fork and add the lemon zest, ricotta and parmesan. Taste for seasoning. You may like to add more chilli at this point too.

Set aside to cool completely, or put in the fridge.

Meanwhile roll out your pasta. Using a machine roll the pasta (adding flour when necessary) until it’s thin enough to just see your hand through, then lay out one strip on a floured surface. Take walnut sized pieces of the filling and place in the centre of the pasta at 2 inch intervals. Dampen the pasta sheet with a pastry brush dipped in water and fold the top part of the sheet over the bottom, pressing down with your fingers to seal. Cut the ravioli and place on a tray well coated in semola. Put in the fridge to chill until you want to serve them.

To Serve:

Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Drop in the ravioli and cook for 2-3 minutes until they bob to the surface. Remove with a slotted spoon and place in your sauce (see below) to keep warm. Serve.

The Sauce:

Melt the butter in a shallow pan. Add the sage leaves and continue cooking it, letting it bubble away until it just begins to turn brown. Once it has begun to brown add a ladle of the pasta cooking water and turn down the heat, stirring. Add the parmesan and keep stirring over a low heat until an emulsion is formed.