BUTTERNUT QUESADILLAS WITH SPINACH & CARAMELIZED ONIONS

Heya guys! It’s May already…the year’s really zooming by huh? Today on the blog we’ve got butternut as the main star of our dish. Ordinarily, I’ve only ever eaten butternut when it’s been cut into strips and roasted but these quesadillas put a nice spin on plain old roasted butternut. We thought of this recipe after a vegan friend of ours requested for a suitable recipe. Unfortunately, we couldn’t find vegan substitutes for the pita bread, butter or mozzarella cheese. If anyone knows where we can find these ingredients, please let us know in the comments. 🙂

This dish turned out to be super tasty despite CICI’s skepticism. I can now happily say that she’s a reformed butternut-hater after tasting what we made. I’m hoping the same will happen to you guys once you try it out!

Prep time: 45 minutes

Cook time: 20 minutes

Serves: 8

Ingredients:

• 1 whole butternut
• 1 bunch of spinach
• 1 large onion
• 3 tbsp of butter plus extra 2 tbsp for spreading
• 6 large pita breads
• I cup grated mozzarella cheese
• 4 tbsp Olive oil
• Salt
• Black pepper

Method:

1. Pre-heat oven to 180⁰

2. Cut the butternut into half and scoop out the seeds with a spoon. Place the halves on a baking tray and sprinkle it with salt, black pepper and half of the amount of olive oil. Roast it for about 40 minutes or until it’s soft and a fork passes through the flesh.

3. Meanwhile, chop the onions into halved onion rings. In a small saucepan fry with the butter until caramelized. Grate the cheese and place aside.

4. Wash the spinach then using your hands, roughly cut them into big chunks.

5. Fry the spinach using the remaining 2 tbsp of olive oil, stir to mix well and cover for a minute or more for it to cook well. Remove it from the heat and set aside.

6. Spread the butter on one side of the pita bread; the side that will be facing down on the pan.

7. Once the butternut is ready, remove it from the oven and leave it to cool for a few minutes. Peel of the skin and cut up the flesh into smaller pieces.

8. In the saucepan with the fried spinach, pour in the caramelized onions, butternut and sweet corn. Mix it well.

9. Working with one pita bread at a time, place it on a pan on medium heat, buttered side facing down. Spread the butternut mixture on half of the pita, sprinkle some mozzarella cheese on top then cover it with the other (unfilled) side of the pita bread. Fry this on low heat until the pita has brown spots on both sides when flipped. Repeat this step until all the pitas are filled.

10. Serve warm and enjoy.

NOTE: The butternut can be peeled and boiled however, butternut is really hard when raw making peeling and chopping it quite difficult. Moreover, roasting it maintains the flavour and makes the peeling process ten times easier. 🙂

You can use tortilla bread or pita bread, the pita can be found in Nakumatt. Alternatively, you can also make your own tortilla bread at home.

Don’t forget to like, comment and share!

—CICI and Ivy xxx