Editor’s note: please make today’s guest welcome, Kristie Welsh, PR and Comms wonderwoman who runs her own agency called Communicated. From now on, Kristie will share monthly recipes with all of us, so that we can wow our friends and family with her achievable but delicious creations.
Ah, spring, with your longer days and soft warm breeze gently reminding us that summer is just around the corner and it’s time to start shedding the layers (and maybe just a little extra winter padding?!)
In my house, the slow cooker and soup maker have been packed away to the back of the cupboard and it’s all about BBQs and salads.
This lamb, butternut pumpkin and pecan salad with a honey mustard dressing is the first recipe that popped to mind when I thought of a springtime mid-week dish.
Sweet roasted pumpkin, creamy avocado, fine slices of apple, shards of parmesan and toasty pecans make for a delicious combination. And the lamb… well, because lamb.
- 8 lamb chops or cutlets (2 per person)
- Olive oil
- Salt and pepper
- Salad
- Mixed Mesclun leaves
- 1 granny smith apple, cored and finely sliced
- 100g pecan halves, toasted
- 1 avocado, sliced or cubed
- ½ butternut pumpkin, seeded and sliced (app. 1cm wide slices)
- ½ Spanish onion, finely sliced
- ½ Lebanese cucumber, sliced
- Parmesan (Reggiano ideally) to garnish
- Dressing
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- ½ tbsp Dijon mustard
- ½ tbsp wholegrain seeded mustard
- 1 tbsp honey
- Lemon to taste (1/2 – 1 tbsp)
- Remove your lamb from the fridge so it can come to room temperature before cooking.
- Peel and slice your butternut pumpkin half into 1cm slices (discarding seeds), and roast in the oven/ under the grill/ in the BBQ until tender.
- Meanwhile, toast your pecan halves – I tossed mine dry on the stovetop until they were crunchy, slightly darker and I could smell the toastiness (about 3mins). Be sure to keep the pan moving and keep an eye on them as they burn quickly.
- Prepare your other salad ingredients; slice the apple, avocado, cucumber and onion. Toss together with mesculin leaves in a large salad bowl.
- Add roasted pumpkin and toasted pecans to salad and top with shards of Parmesan. (I peel shards directly off the Parmesan wedge into the salad using a vegetable peeler.)
- Pre-heat your frying pan/ griddle/ BBQ. Prepare your lamb by drizzling lightly with olive oil and seasoning with a pinch of salt and pepper each. Cook to your liking (around 3 mins each side for medium-rare).
- While your lamb is cooking, quickly whip up your dressing- simply add your mayo, mustards and honey in a bowl, stir, then add lemon juice to taste. Continue stirring until combined.
- Serve. Eat. Enjoy!
I love discovering new salad combos that take a salad from a side dish to a main. What are your favourite combos for spring?
Kristie Welsh is a Brisbane-based mum of three children under six, who runs her own PR and communications consultancy,Communicated, and happens to really, really enjoy good food. She likes to pretend she is a really excellent cook by adapting and creating recipes that are actually incredibly simple, yet look and taste amazing. Kristie counts cooking with Jamie Oliver as her culinary highlight.
Comments 10
Whipped this up for dinner last night!!!! Was awesome 🙂 Thanks for sharing!
So glad you liked it Robyn!
thankyou for the ideas Kristie! … I love salads of any type!
that looks really yummy! … love m:)X
I love a good salad too Merilyn- it’s finding one the rest of the family will eat that’s the tricky part in my house 😉
That looks great! thank you for the dinner idea
You’re very welcome Lisa- perfect dinner for this time of year!
Yum Kristie, dinner sorted – I’ve had some lovely little lamb cutlets out for dinner tonight and I’ve got everything except the pecans and that’s easily fixed!
They are a worthy addition Cheryl! Can’t go wrong with lamb cutlets
Yum! That salad looks delicious and I love the sound of the dressing. I’m not great at salads as mains, so I’ll definitely be adding this one to the repetoire!
We roll it out at least every fortnight at this time of year. There’s not many salads that will pass as a meal for my hubby- but this is one of them!