Madelaine
Vegan Butternut Squash and Spinach Pasty
Halloween is over but pumpkin/squash season is still on, so we have plenty more time to enjoy this healthy, tasty and versatile vegetable (which is a fruit btw!). One way to enjoy your pumpkin or squash is to roast it and make a delicious and beautifully coloured filling out of it, which you can use as a homemade Cornish Pasty-ish filling. Here is an easy-to-follow recipe that you can try today: handmade and nutritious Vegan Butternut Squash and Spinach Pasty. It has a crunchy crust and a soft and light filling. Perfect on the go or as a sit-down meal. Here we served it with roast vegetables, gravy and freshly grated horseradish, but it goes well with a nice salad too.

Vegan Butternut Squash and Spinach Pasty
Prep time: 30min
Baking time: 50-60min
Total time: 1h 30min
Servings: 4
INGREDIENTS FILLING: · 1 small butternut squash · 2-3 sage leaves (chopped) · 2 handfuls of spinach · 4 tbsp olive oil · salt and pepper to taste · pinch of nutmeg PASTY: · 230g plain flour · 100g margarine · 2 tbsp water · pinch of salt
DIRECTIONS FILLING: 1. Preheat the oven to 220 °C/ 200 °C fan/ gas 7. 2. Peel the butternut squash, then cut it in half, spoon out the seeds, and cut it into small cubes (approx. half inch/1 cm). Place the diced squash on a baking tray lined with parchment paper, drizzle with 2tbsp olive oil, season with salt and pepper and the chopped sage leaves. Bake for about 15-20min, or until soft and tender, then remove it from the oven and let it cool. 3. In the meantime, add the remaining 2 tbsp olive oil to a large non-stick pan. Heat it and add the washed spinach leaves. Season with salt and pepper to taste and add a pinch of nutmeg extra flavour. Cook for about 1min until the spinach is wilted, then remove from the heat and let cool. PASTY: 4. Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. 5. Add the flour, salt, and margarine to a large bowl, and with your hands, rub them together until crumbs form. Spoon in the water and work them together until well-combined. 6. Roll out the pastry to the desired thickness on a floured surface and cut out 4 rounds using a smaller plate as a guide.
7. Add some of the butternut squash and spinach filling on one half of a round pastry, then fold over the other half. Seal the edges by pushing them down gently with your thumb. Then, starting at the left side, fold the pastry over your thumb and keep on moving until you reach the other end, and tuck the remaining bit underneath. Repeat with the other three.
8. Place the filled pasties on a baking tray lined with parchment paper and brush them with water. Pop the tray in the oven and bake the pasties for about 35-40 min.
9. Once the pasties are baked, remove from the oven, and serve hot with your favourite garnish.
Folding may take a little practice... but the result will be worth it!

Looking for more squash inspiration? I think you might like this Vegan Butternut Squash and Quinoa Salad recipe.

Did you try this recipe?
Let me know how it went in the Comments below and share a photo on Instagram with the tag: #madelaineskitchen