Food & Drink

Halloween recipes that won’t scare you - Niall McKenna

Niall McKenna shares his seasonal recipes for apple and pumpkin pie, and butternut squash, kale and orzo soup

Niall McKenna's Apple and Pumpkin Pie
Niall McKenna's Apple and Pumpkin Pie (ll 2)
By Niall McKenna

It’s the weekend before Halloween night and the nights are getting darker and the days shorter. At this time of year, it’s all about comforting foods which you can pile into a bowl as you sit in front of the TV with your favourite spooky movie.

If you have been reading my recipes for a while or visited my restaurants, you will know how I love to cook seasonally, and you can’t get more autumnal ingredients than pumpkin and butternut squash.

For this reason, this week’s dishes are Apple and Pumpkin Pie, and Butternut Squash, Kale and Orzo Soup. These would also go down a treat at your Halloween party.

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Apple and Pumpkin Pie

Ingredients

(Makes one, 7″ inch pie)

· 500g shortcrust pastry

· 25g butter

· 500g Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and sliced

· 500g cooking apples

· 500g pumpkin

· Juice and zest of 1 lemon

· 1 tbsp plain flour

· 2 tsp ground cinnamon

· Freshly grated nutmeg to taste

· 150g caster sugar (reserve 25g for dredging)

· 1 egg, beaten, for wash

Methods

· Preheat oven to 200C.

· Divide the pastry in half and roll out to about eight inches (20cms). Using the pastry, line the base of a 7″ pie dish and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.

· In a pot on medium heat, melt the butter, spices and flour. Next, add the cooking apples, pumpkin, lemon and sugar, cooking for five to six minutes until the apple starts to break down.

· Next, add the remaining Granny Smith apples and stir.

· Once cooked, leave to cool. Then, place the mixture in pie dish, top with the remaining pastry and crimp around the edges to seal in the fruit. Pierce the middle of the top of the pie to let the steam escape.

Niall McKenna's Butternut Squash, Kale and Orzo Soup
Niall McKenna's Butternut Squash, Kale and Orzo Soup

Butternut Squash, Kale and Orzo Soup

Ingredients

· 1 butternut squash, peeled and finely diced

· 100g orzo pasta

· 400g kale

· 2 tbsp olive oil

· 1 onion, finely chopped

· 1 garlic clove, finely chopped

· 25g oregano

· 1 vegetable stock

· Salt and freshly ground black pepper

· ½ lemon juiced

Method

· Place the oil in a large saucepan with finely chopped onion and garlic, gently fry for eight to 10 minutes until soft but not brown.

· Next, add the butternut squash and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

· Then, add in the oregano and vegetable stock, place lid on pot and simmer for 15 minutes.

· Next, add the pasta, pick the kale off the stock and add, cooking for a further 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and a squeeze of lemon to serve.