What better way to spend a Saturday than enjoying a long lunch and a bottle of bubbles with your flock? 🍇
This spread features some caramelised pumpkin honey toasts with goats cheese, a beautiful orange & fennel salad, and a creamy creme fraiche pasta with parmesan chicken meatballs – divine! You’ll want to save this menu for your next lunch or dinner party – it pairs perfectly with Babydoll Sparkling Rosé🥂💗
To recreate any of these mouth-watering dishes, see recipes:
- Caramelised Pumpkin Toasts with Dill, Goats Cheese & Honey
- Creamy Chicken Meatball Pasta with Sage, Parmesan & Mascarpone
- Fennel & Orange Salad With Citrus Dressing & Warm Toasted Walnuts & Dates
Recipe by Melie’s Kitchen
Chicken Meatballs
Ingredients:
800g chicken mince
3 cloves garlic, minced
⅔ cup panko breadcrumbs
½ cup finely grated parmesan
1 tsp each dried Italian herbs & chilli flakes
1 handful fresh sage leaves
Sage & Mascarpone Pasta
Ingredients:
1 Tbsp each butter, finely chopped fresh sage & thyme
1 shallot, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
½ cup Babydoll Sparkling Rosé
1 ¼ cups Israeli couscous
650-750 ml chicken stock
⅓ cup mascarpone
2 handfuls baby spinach
½ cup finely grated parmesan
Method:
Add all of the meatball ingredients, except for the sage, to a large bowl along with 2 tsp flaky sea salt. Mix together, until combined. Using gloves (or oiled hands), roll heaped tablespoons of the mixture into balls.
Heat a generous drizzle of olive oil in a large, deep frying pan on medium heat. Add the meatballs and cook for 8-10 minutes, turning often, until golden and cooked through. Add the sage leaves to the pan for the final 2 minutes of cook time. Transfer meatballs to a plate and keep warm.
Return the frying pan to medium-high heat. Add the butter, sage, thyme, shallot and garlic. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring, until softened and fragrant. Add Babydoll Sparkling Rosé, stir and bring to a simmer. Add the couscous and stock (start off with 650 ml). Cook over medium heat for 12-15 minutes, stirring often, until the couscous is just tender. Add more stock to the pan as needed during cooking if it starts to look a bit dry. Stir through the mascarpone and baby spinach, until wilted. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Serve the pasta topped with the meatballs. Garnish with extra herbs and grated parmesan.
Recipe by Melie’s Kitchen
Caramelised Honey Pumpkin
Ingredients:
3 cups diced skinless crown pumpkin (diced roughly 2cm)
1 Tbsp runny honey
1 red chilli, thinly sliced
1 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
Extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling
Toasts
Ingredients:
4 slices sourdough, about 1cm thick
Extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling
100g goats cheese, crumbled
1 Tbsp runny honey
Fresh dill fronds, for garnishing
1 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds
Method:
Preheat your oven to 200°C fan bake. Line a medium oven tray with baking paper.
Caramelised Pumpkin: Place the diced pumpkin onto the lined oven tray and drizzle generously with olive oil. Season well with salt (I used smoked sea salt). Roast in the oven for an initial 25-30 minutes, until the pumpkin is golden and tender. Remove the tray from the oven and smash up the pumpkin with a fork. Drizzle over the honey and lemon juice. Scatter over the chilli, drizzle with some more olive oil and season lightly again with salt. Return to the oven for a further 8-10 minutes, until the pumpkin is very golden and starting to caramelise. Set caramelised pumpkin aside until ready to use.
Toasts: Cut the slices of sourdough in half and place in an even layer on an oven tray. Drizzle generously with olive oil. Bake for 15-20 minutes, turning the slices over half way through cooking, until they are golden and crispy.
Assemble: Top the toasts with the pumpkin and goats cheese. Drizzle over the honey and a little more olive oil. Garnish with the dill & sesame seeds.
Recipe by Melie’s Kitchen
Dressing
Ingredients:
Juice of 1 blood orange
Juice of ½ lemon
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp runny honey
1 clove garlic, minced
Salad
Ingredients:
⅓ cup walnuts pieces
1 handful dried dates, roughly chopped
Extra virgin olive oil, for frying
100g pomegranate arils
2 oranges, peeled & thinly sliced into rounds
1 small fennel bulb, cut in half lengthways & thinly sliced
1 head purple lettuce, leaves picked
1x 125g ball burrata or buffalo mozzarella
Fresh dill, to garnish
Method:
Dressing: Combine all the ingredients together in a bowl with 1 tso flaky salt.
Salad: Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a small pot on medium heat. Add the walnuts and toast for 2 minutes, until golden. Add the dates and season with salt. Cook for a further 1 minute, then remove from heat and transfer to a bowl. Add the pomegranate arils and toss together.
Arrange the orange slices, fennel and lettuce over a serving platter. Tear the burrata or mozzarella over the top of the salad. Scatter over the walnut mixture and garnish with dill. Drizzle over the dressing just before serving.