Georgia is beginning to see the first few signs of the season changing. We still have hot in-the-middle days, but the mornings are cooler and the evenings end in crisp sunsets that don’t melt your skin. Some trees are beginning to lose their leaves and the earth is preparing for winter, already. It blows me away how God created the world to work in harmony with itself. How perfectly he orchestrated the seasons for a purpose, and how we get to enjoy the variances they bring. Something about autumn awakens my soul and I feel creative and full of life. I think God knew we would need seasons.

I found the most gorgeous little pumpkins/squashes in the grocery store with my boys and decided to try this quinoa recipe. I love anything that I can make ahead and keep in the fridge for lunches during the week. The flavors were amazing and melded together even better after eating it the next day.

//GINGER ROASTED PUMPKIN + QUINOA SALAD WITH MINT, CHILI + LIME

 serves 2-4

{gluten-free + vegan}

 2 cups fresh pumpkin, peeled and diced

1 tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger

2 green or red chillies, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 teaspoons pure maple syrup

a handful of finely chopped coriander (cilantro) roots and stems, optional

Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

 1 cup (185g) quinoa

1 1/2 cups (375ml) water

 A few drops of YL Lime Essential Oil

a good handful each of fresh mint and coriander (cilantro) leaves

toasted pumpkin (pepita) seeds

 Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Peel pumpkin, remove the seeds and cut into even chunks approximately 2-3cm wide. Combine pumpkin with ginger, chilli, garlic, olive oil, maple and coriander roots and season well with salt and pepper. Combine well before turning out onto a large oven tray. Bake for 25-30 minutes, turning once or twice or until the pumpkin is lovely a golden and soft right through. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool slightly.Meanwhile place quinoa into a fine-mesh sieve and rinse well. Bring the water to the boil in a small saucepan before adding the quinoa, covering with a lid and reducing the heat down to a gentle simmer. Cook for 10-12 minutes until the water has been absorbed and the quinoa is tender. Remove from the heat, leave the lid on and set aside to steam for a further 5 minutes before fluffing up with a fork.

When both the pumpkin and quinoa are cooked, combine the two in a large bowl, making sure you scrape any lovely bits of ginger and oil from the bottom of the roasting tray into the bowl too. Sprinkle with YL lime essential oil, stir through the herbs, season with more salt and pepper if desired and scatter over the pumpkin seeds to serve. You can eat this warm or cool the pumpkin and quinoa first before stirring through the herbs and serve at room temperature.

ENJOY!!!