Creamy Mushroom & Squash Bulgar with Sage.

This delightful earthy dish is great to get into the seasonal flow of autumn. You can swap the bulgar for risotto or pasta, but bulgar packs a nutritional punch and keeps you feeling full for longer.

To make this vegan, simply use a vegan cream or a little flour and more vegetable stock to create a thick sauce.

Serves: 2 / Ready in: 25 mins / Difficulty: 2/5 / Storing: Best eaten fresh, can be stored in the fridge in a sealed container for up to 3 days, add a splash of water when re-heating.

Ingredients

• 120g bulgar

• 300ml veggie/chicken stock

• 1/2 glass of white wine

• 5-8 fresh sage leaves - torn into pieces

• fresh or dried thyme - picked

• 1 tsp paprika

• 30g butter

• 300g mushrooms (seasonal, I prefer chanterelles, oyster or porcini) - sliced

• 1 white onion - peeled and finely chopped

• 3-4 cloves of garlic - sliced

• 270g pumpkin or butternut squash (without seeds) - thinly sliced

• 4 tbsp cream

• olive oil (truffle oil optional)

• Parmesan (optional)

Method

Place a large frying pan on a medium to high heat, add some olive oil and a knob of butter, add the onions and sautéed until soft. Then add another knob of butter, mushrooms and the squash, and allow to cook for 5 minutes or so until soft and turning golden. Add the sage, thyme, paprika and garlic and let it sizzle for a few minutes before pouring in the white wine. Let the alcohol cook out and the liquid reduce by half.

Add in the bulgar, stir together before pouring in the stock. Allow it to come to the boil and then reduce the heat so it simmers away, pop the lid on and let it cook as per pack instructions, usually around 7 minutes.

Have a taste, adding pepper, and salt if needed and then stir through the cream. Give it another taste, adjust, loosen up with a little olive oil and serve. I usually grate over some parmesan too.

Nutritional information, per serving
kcal: 780
Fat: 40.1g
Saturates: 18.8g
Carbs: 88.4g
Sugars: 11g
Fibre: 4g
Protein: 24.8g