Pumpkin Boats

Ingredients:

- 1 whole pumpkin
- 1 large zucchini
- ½ a leek
- ½ a large eggplant
- a large piece of fresh ginger
- fresh sage leaves
- olive oil
- salt (herbal salt is preferable)
- chili powder (as per one’s taste)

Procedure:

Cut the pumpkin into slices and remove the seeds leaving the skin on. Place them in an oven dish and bake in the oven at 180oC until soft.
In the mean time, cut the zucchini and eggplant into very small cubes, as well as the leek and the sage leaves. Heat some olive oil in a pan, and then lightly stir-fry the sage leaves and leek – when golden, add the zucchini, and then the eggplant. Remember when stir-frying vegetables: if you cook the vegetables at a high heat, they will retain the water and remain crunchier. If you instead cook them at a lower heat, they will go mushy and lose a lot of their taste. Add the herbal salt, fresh ginger (which you will have cut up into small pieces), and chili powder.
Simply place the vegetables onto each pumpkin slice, pressing them slightly down into the pumpkin. Replace them in the oven for another 15 minutes, and then ENJOY!

ENJOY: from the French “en joie”, literally “in joy”: pumpkin is a very joyful vegetable with its vibrant orange color. It is truly a gift of nature, especially as the season gets colder; you want to boost your body up with orange foods! Pumpkins are rich in antioxidants and beta-carotene, which will strengthen your immune system. Beta-carotene converts to Vitamin A and helps reduce the risk of cancer and other dangerous diseases.
IN JOY! For body, mind, and soul.