Inventive ideas with underused veg

Together with our partners from Fresh Direct, we are serving up some inventive ideas to utilise some of our lesser known vegetables.

In this post, the spotlight is on Kale, Butternut Squash and Celeriac.

Until recently, Kale was a pretty much overlooked and unloved vegetable in the brassica family. However, since achieving ‘superfood’ status due to its high levels of vitamins A, C and K, plus being a good source of vitamin B6, calcium and iron, it’s been finding its way onto more and more menus. It’s even higher in some vitamins that spinach!

Kale pesto

With its deep earthy flavour curly kale can make a good substitute for traditional basil in a pesto and stands up well to strong flavours such as garlic and parmesan. It’s worth blanching the kale leaves first to remove some of the fibrous texture of the leaves, just remember to squeeze our any excess moisture. Us a good quality cold pressed rapeseed oil to add depth to the flavour.

Kale crisps

A delicious and healthier alternative to potato crisps. Simply remove the woody stalks from the kale leaves and toss in a small amount of cold pressed rapeseed oil. Add seasoning such as salt, pepper, vinegar, chilli, or spice powders. Lay flat on a baking sheet on greaseproof paper and slowly dry out in a dehydrator or low oven (around 90 degrees) until the leaves are crisp. Store in an airtight container one cooked and cooled.

First grown in the 1940s the name butternut squash derived from the squash being as smooth as butter and sweet as a nut! It’s one of the most versatile of all the gourds and has grown in popularity in the last few years. It’s part of the Cucurbita family which is the same as courgettes, cucumbers, pumpkins, and melons.

Cookies and cakes

Try dicing the butternut squash into 5mm cubes and adding to a cookie dough instead of chocolate chips for a healthier option. Use our 20mm diced squash or our whole prepared squash to get you started.

Gnocchi

A colourful and tasty alternative to traditional potato gnocchi. Swap out potato for roasted butternut squash which as been pureed. The squash needs to be roasted rather than boiled to keep the mix as dry as possible.

While celeriac won’t win any prizes in a beauty competition, it more than makes up for it in taste. Part of the Apiaceae (or parsley) family, it has a mild celery flavour without all the string and fibre of celery and is a lot more versatile.

Barbecued celeriac

Cook a whole celeriac ‘low and slow’ on the barbecue (or bake in the oven like jacket potato) when the flesh inside is soft and fluffy and the skin is blackened and smoky it’s ready. Scoop off the top and fluff up the fulling with a fork incorporating chili butter. Great served as a sharer with nachos to scoop out the filling.

With truffle

The flavour of celeriac pairs fantastically well with truffle. So, whether it’s creamed celeriac soup, puree or gratin, or even plain roasted, try finishing with a splash of truffle oil for a really luxurious combination.

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