Grilled Pumpkin

Ingredients

• 1 kg Hokkaido or muskmelon pumpkin (1 Hokkaido or muskmelon pumpkin)
• 2 tbsp grated orange zest (unprocessed)
• 100 ml Orange Juice
• 1 Garlic clove
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• 0.5 tsp Coriander seeds
• 0.5 tsp white peppercorns
• 0.5 tsp Salt
• 5 tbsp olive oil
• 2 shallots
• 1 Garlic clove
• 120 g pumpkin seeds
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• 2 tbsp sunflower oil
• 1 red chili pepper
• 6 romaine lettuce leaves
• 1 bunch parsley
• 1 bunch coriander greens
• 300 ml Vegetable broth
• Salt
• pepper (ground)

Instructions

1. 1.

   Wash the pumpkin, cut it lengthwise in half, core and cut into unpeeled slices about 1.5 cm thick.

2. 2.

   Mix orange juice and zest, squeeze in garlic. Crush fennel seeds with coriander and pepper in a mortar. Add everything to the orange mixture, stir, add salt and olive oil, and blend well with an immersion blender. Brush the pumpkin slices with the marinate and cover for about 1 hour in the refrigerator.

3. 3.

   Meanwhile, peel shallots and garlic for the pumpkin seed pesto. Dice the shallots finely. Toast pumpkin seeds in a dry pan until fragrant. Add fennel seeds and toast briefly; set aside. Sauté shallots in hot sunflower oil until translucent and squeeze in garlic.

4. 4.

   Slice the chili pepper lengthwise, remove seeds, wash, and chop finely.

5. 5.

   Wash lettuce leaves, pat dry, and cut into strips. Wash parsley and coriander, shake dry. Remove small leaflets from both herbs and roughly chop.

6. 6.

   Blend salad, chili, herbs, pumpkin seed mixture, shallots, and 250 ml vegetable broth in a blender or with an immersion blender until smooth. Add more broth if needed; season with salt and pepper.

7. 7.

   Grill the pumpkin slices on an oiled grill rack for 4-5 minutes per side until tender and browned, brushing occasionally with marinate. Serve grilled pumpkin slices with pumpkin seed pesto.