Black Beans with Roasted Squash, Toasted Kale and Sage
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 large butternut squash
50g pumpkin seeds
large handful of sage leaves
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 tins of black beans
Light olive oil
100g kale or cavelo nero
1 tbsp sesame seeds
1 tsp chilli flakes
Method
Preheat the oven to 140C
Wash and dry the kale or cavelo nero, removed thick stalks and chop. Mix with drizzle of oil, sesame seeds and chilli and place on a baking tray in one layer. Roast for 15 – 20 mins until crisp (don’t let them burn!)
Turn the oven up to 180C
Wash the butternut squash, half, remove the seeds and chop – no need to peel
Place on a baking tray, drizzle with olive oil, season generously and roast for 30 mins, turning half way through
Drain and rinse the black beans
Fry the sage leaves in some hot olive oil, when crisp remove with slotted spoon and place on some kitchen towel to remove excess oil, season well.
Fry the pumpkin seeds in the same oil, remove with a slotted spoon and remove excess oil as with the sage leaves
Use the oil in the pan to make your dressing (it will have retained lovely sagey flavour) – add the apple cider vinegar and seasoning and whisk
Then combine the beans, squash, sage, pumpkin seeds and kale crisps and pour over the dressing.
For those that like cheese you could top with feta or soft goats cheese but it is delicious as is!
The black beans are powerhouses of nutrition – they are a fantastic source of soluble and insoluble fibre, resistant starch and polyphenols – all fuel for your friendly gut bacteria.
A portion of black beans provide 15g protein and are a good source of calcium, magnesium, zinc, as well as B vitamins especially folate. They are very rich in antioxidants.
The seasonal squash and pumpkin seeds work brilliantly with fried sage leaves and kale chips in this filling autumnal dish, I’ve added chilli flakes and sesame seeds for extra punch and crunch. Enjoy!
Other ideas:
You could add soft goats cheese or feta if you eat cheese
You could swap the butternut squash for sweet potato
You could use chickpeas or puy lentils instead of the black beans
