This clever vegie-forward main packs three common vegies inside one another for a spectacular ‘roast’. And, to keep it all fresh tasting and seasonally appropriate we’ve matched it with a tangy herby salsa, so you’ll be set for a Christmas main to cheer for. Just add bon bons!
Looking for more vegan or vegetarian Christmas recipes?
Ingredients
Method
Preheat the oven to 200°C (180°C fan-forced).
Scoop seeds from zucchini using a teaspoon, leaving a 5mm border, discard seeds.
Trim the leek to fit inside zucchini; reserve any tender parts of the leek. Scoop seeds from pumpkin; discard. Scoop flesh from pumpkin, roughly the same size as the hole left from scooping seeds (you should have about 5 cups) to make a cavity large enough to fit zucchini; reserve pumpkin flesh.
Trim zucchini, if necessary, to fit inside pumpkin; hand chop (or pulse in a food processor) the pumpkin flesh and leek scraps until finely chopped. Set aside.
Prick the insides of the zucchini and pumpkin shells with a fork and season with pepper.
Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large frying pan over medium heat and add the chopped pumpkin and leek mixture. Cook, stirring for 10 minutes or until softened. Transfer to a large bowl; cool.
Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add cumin seeds, onion and garlic, cook, stirring until onions are just tender. Add the rinsed rice to the pan and stir to combine. Mix the stock powder with 1 cup water, add to the pan and bring to a boil; reduce heat to low and cook covered for 5-10 minutes or until rice has absorbed the liquid and is just cooked. Remove from heat; cool.
Combine pumpkin mixture, rice mixture, lemon rind, chilli, nuts and parsley. Press half of the stuffing mixture into one of the pumpkin cavities. Position leek into one half of the zucchini and gently press into stuffing; cover with the other half of the zucchini. Press remaining stuffing into the remaining pumpkin half and place over the first; pushing down gently to seal the two halves. Secure pumpkin together with kitchen string. Brush with remaining oil, wrap in foil; place in a lined roasting pan.
Bake for 2 hours. Remove foil; bake for a further 45 minutes or until the outside is browned and pumpkin is tender. Add tomatoes for the last 25 minutes of cooking time. Stand, covered for 30 minutes.
SALSA VERDE Process all ingredients until herbs are finely chopped.
Serve roast sliced with Salsa Verde and basil.
This recipe is also suitable for gluten-free diets if you select a gluten-free stock powder.
Test Kitchen tip
