Pan-cooked pumpkin in rich tomato sauce recipe

Pumpkins aren’t just for carving. A well flavoured garlic tomato sauce makes a great base to cook up chunks of pumpkin in this delicious dish. Serve this as an accompaniment to sausages or grilled meats as a warming change from mash potato, or try sprinkling with cheese and spooning over pasta for a super filling dish. Quick, cheap, easy and a definite winter warmer.

Ingredients

• 2tbsp olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 600ml passata or sieved tomatoes
• 2tbsp sundried tomato paste
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 25g butter or margarine
• 450g prepared pumpkin (or squash), cut into 2cm thick pieces

Method

1. Heat 1tbsp oil in a saucepan and gently fry the garlic and onion for 5 mins until softened but not brown. Pour over the tomatoes and add the paste and plenty of seasoning. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 15 mins.
2. Meanwhile, melt the butter with the remaining oil in a frying pan and gently fry the pumpkin with some seasoning for 6-7 mins, stirring, until beginning to soften. Set aside.
3. Once the sauce is cooked through, pour it over the pumpkin and then heat through, stirring occasionally, for 10 mins, until the pumpkin is tender and the sauce thick. Serve immediately, straight from the pan.