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Quinoa Filled Hokkaido by Gordon Ramsay

Autumn means PUMPKINS, one of the very low calorie vegetables. They are a particularly good source of dietary fibre, as well as a range of vitamins and minerals.
Quinoa (a mix of white and red), cooked in vegetable stock, scented with cinnamon, tossed with pumpkin seeds and cranberries, is stuffed into Hokkaido pumpkin halves, then baked until tender for a delicious, gluten-free, vegetarian meal. You can easily replace the Hokkaido with another squash like acorn or kabocha.

1 tbsp Olive oil
1 Small yellow onion, cut into 1/3-inch dices
3/4 tsp Ground cumin
150 g Quinoa, rinsed in cold water and drained
450 ml Vegetable stock
50 g Dried, unsweetened cranberries
1 / 800 g Hokkaido pumpkin
30 g Pumpkin seeds
1/3 tsp Ground cinnamon
1-2 tsp Fresh lemon juice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat the olive oil in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. When it is hot, add the diced onion and ground cumin and cook, stirring frequently, until the onion is soft and golden brown, about 10 minutes.
Add the quinoa to the saucepan and stir to coat the grains. Add the stock and raise the heat to high. When the liquid comes to a boil, reduce the heat to low, add the cranberries, and cover the pan. Cook at a slow simmer until the liquid has been absorbed, 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, cut the Hokkaido pumpkin in half. Scoop out and discard the seeds and fibers. Place the pumpkin halves on a rimmed baking sheet and set it aside.
When the quinoa is cooked, remove the pan from the heat and stir in the pumpkin seeds, cinnamon and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 190C/375F.
Divide the quinoa filling among the pumpkin halves. Transfer the baking sheet to the oven and roast until the quinoa is hot and the flesh of the pumpkins is tender when pierced with a skewer or fork, 50 minutes. Serve immediately.

Fresh Ginger, Walnuts and Sesame Seed Logs by Gordon Ramsay

Full of quality and tasty ingredients, these sesame logs with walnuts, oats and fresh ginger are easy to make and are perfect as a on the go energy snack, a sweet lunchbox filler, or as an afternoon pick-me-up without the refined sugar. Instead of logs, you can shape these into balls or bars if you prefer. Can’t find Medjool dates? No problem. Just use regular deglet noor dates, which are equally delicious and sweet with a firmer texture. Medjool dates, by contrast, have a rich, almost caramel-like taste and a soft, chewy texture.

120 g Walnuts, toasted
45 g Rolled oats
200 g Medjool dates, pitted and chopped
1 tbsp Freshly grated ginger
1/3 tsp Black salt
50 g Sesame seeds, toasted

Heat a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the walnuts to the hot, dry pan in a single layer. Cook, stirring frequently until the walnuts start to brown and they smell toasted, about 5 minutes. Transfer the walnuts to a plate or baking tray to cool completely.
Process walnuts and oats in a food processor until finely chopped. Add in dates, ginger and salt. process until mixture forms a paste.
Shape level tablespoons of mixture into 5cm long logs and place them on a baking-paper-lined tray. Chill for 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, stir sesame seeds in a frying pan over medium heat for 2 minutes or until lightly toasted. Cool. Roll logs in sesame seeds and chill for 1- 2 hours or until firm.

Sourdough Challah with Grape Sourdough Starter by Gordon Ramsay

Challah, usually braided and typically eaten on Jewish holidays. The dough is enriched with eggs and oil, while using sugar or honey for some sweetness. The fun and exciting part comes from the braiding the dough. A simple 3-stranded braid would be gorgeous enough as the centerpiece for your dinner table. But a 4, or 6 stranded challah would really impress your guests. You can also coil the long braided loaf into a circle.

Grape Sourdough Starter	Dough
454 g Organic red grapes Rye flour Water	240 g Wild Grape Sourdough Starter 2 Eggs, lightly beaten 1 Egg yolks, lightly beaten 120 ml Water 55 g Honey 50 g Sunflower oil 2 tsp Salt 440 g All-purpose or bread flour 1 Egg white 1 tbsp Water 1 tbsp Oatmeal bran or seeds/nuts

Start with the starter. Stem grapes into a medium mixing bowl. Crush with hands and cover with a plastic wrap. Use a fork or wooden toothpick to gently poke some holes along the top and set aside for 3-4 days at room temperature. After 3-4 days there should be bubbles in the grape juice/must, indicating fermentation has begun.
Measure 240 grams of strained grape juice and pour in a 1-quart glass jar. Stir in 120 grams of rye flour to make a thick, porridge like mixture. Set aside for 24 hours at room temperature.
Measure 1 cup starter, discard any extra. Add in 110 grams of filtered water and 110 grams of rye flour. Let stand at room temperature for 24 hours.
Repeat the following day. Some activity should be noticeable: the mixture should be starting to bubble. Repeat twice more. You will need to discard some of the mixture each day.
The starter is full of bubbles and ready for use to make bread. If you won’t be using the starter for several days, put the jar, with the lid covered loosely, into the refrigerator until you’re ready to use it. If you are going to use the starter in the next day or two, just leave it out and feed it every 12 hours or so.
Prepare the dough by mixing the starter, eggs, egg yolk, honey, oil, water, and the salt. Stir. Add flour 1 cup at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition. Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Knead the dough, adding more flour sparingly, until the dough is smooth, satiny, has lost most of it’s stickiness, and is fairly firm. Cover and allow it to rise until tripled in volume.
Punch down the dough, knead briefly and cut into 4 equal pieces. Divide one piece into 3 equal portions. Form each of them into strands of about 30-cm in length, tapered so the center of each piece is thicker than the ends. You should now have three thick and three thin strands.
Braid the three thick strands into a loaf and set aside. Braid the three smaller strands into a smaller loaf. Lightly indent the top center of the larger loaf down its length. Wet it slightly with water. Put the smaller loaf on top of the indention. Beat egg white with a tablespoon of water. Brush this egg wash all over the loaf and allow them to rise until doubled.
Preheat oven to 180C/350F. Brush the loaf with the egg wash again and sprinkle the top with oatmeal bran. Place it into the oven, bake about 35 minutes.