Curried Mashed Pumpkin with Spicy Green Lentils

I’m bringing back the comfort food with these spicy green lentils served over a flavorful curried mashed pumpkin!

This dish features a super creamy pumpkin purée that is flavored with garlic, chili, cumin, and coconut cream for extra richness. The green lentils not only add texture and flavor, but they also add protein and iron. Ready to dig into this recipe?

It starts with the mashed pumpkin. I usually prefer to make my own pumpkin puree, so I start by roasting it in the oven until the flesh is soft, then transfer it to a food processor to turn it into a smooth puree. If you want to save time, feel free to use canned pumpkin puree, I won’t judge.

Next, we sautée some onion and garlic with spices like cumin, turmeric, chili, and coriander. To replace butter, I went with coconut milk/cream that adds richness as well as a delicate coconut flavor that goes very well with the spices and the pumpkin.

Now, onto the lentils! We cook them for about 20 minutes with a drizzle of soy sauce to bring some umami. Then, cooked lentils are sautéed with shallot, garlic, cayenne pepper, and chili. For more flavor, I also stirred in a tablespoon of nutritional yeast as well as dried rosemary and thyme.

Top with cilantro, toasted pine nuts for nuttiness, and some sliced onions for an extra crunch!

These spicy green lentils go so well with the rich and creamy pumpkin purée. This makes a comforting and delicious meal to have on a cold winter day!

If you enjoy this curried mashed pumpkin recipe, you might also like this Celery Root & Cauliflower Puree!

🎃 More Pumpkin Recipes

Baked Pumpkin French Toast (Vegan)

Easy Pumpkin Soup with Spicy Croutons

Vegan Pumpkin Bread

Vegan Pumpkin Pancakes

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Curried Mashed Pumpkin with Spicy Green Lentils

5 from 7 votes

Author: Thomas Pagot

Rich and creamy spiced mashed pumpkin served with spicy green lentils! A comforting, healthy, and nutritious meal perfect to fight the cold weather!

Print Pin Review

Prep Time : 30 minutes mins

Cook Time : 35 minutes mins

Baking Time : 45 minutes mins

Total Time : 1 hour hr 50 minutes mins

Servings 4 servings

Calories 391 kcal

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

Curried Pumpkin Puree

• ▢ 1 medium sugar pumpkin
• ▢ 1 tbsp olive oil
• ▢ 2 cloves of garlic minced
• ▢ 1 small onion diced
• ▢ 3/4 tsp cumin
• ▢ 1/2 tsp each: ground chili, turmeric, coriander
• ▢ 1/2 tsp salt
• ▢ 1/2 cup coconut cream
• ▢ 2-3 tbsp water to thin

Spicy Lentils

• ▢ 1 cup dry green lentils washed and drained
• ▢ 2 cups water
• ▢ 1 tbsp soy sauce
• ▢ 1 tbsp oil
• ▢ 1 shallot minced
• ▢ 1 clove of garlic minced
• ▢ 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• ▢ 1/4 tsp chili
• ▢ 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
• ▢ 1/8 tsp salt
• ▢ 1/4 tsp each: dried rosemary, thyme
• ▢ 1/2 cup water as needed

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Instructions

 

Curried Pumpkin Puree

• Preheat oven to 400°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Slice the stem of your pumpkin. Next, cut your pumpkin in half and scoop out the seeds using an icecream scoop. Brush the inside with a little bit of oil and place face down on the baking sheet.
• Roast for about 45 minutes, or until the flesh is very soft and the skin darker. In the meantime, prepare the spicy lentils.
• Remove from the oven and let cool for at least 15 minutes. Transfer the pumpkin flesh to a food processor and process until very smooth. Set aside.
• Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Once hot, add the garlic and onion and cook for 7-10 minutes, or until the onion starts to caramelize.
• Next, add the spices and salt and cook for another minute. Pour in the coconut cream (or full-fat coconut milk) and the pumpkin purée. Stir to mix everything together, if the mashed pumpkin appears too thick, add a couple tablespoons of water. Cook for about 3 minutes over low-medium heat, stirring regularly to prevent burning. Remove from heat and cover to keep warm.

Spicy Lentils

• Add the lentils, water, and soy sauce to a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and let simmer uncovered for about 20 minutes, or until lentils are cooked and almost no water remains.
• In another saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Once hot, add the shallot and garlic and cook for 3-5 minutes, or until fragrant. Add the cayenne pepper, chili, nutritional yeast, and cook for one more minute.
• Next, add the cooked lentils, salt, rosemary, and thyme. Stir to combine and cook for 5 more minutes. Taste to adjust seasonings and spiciness to your liking. If the lentils appear too dry, add 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup of water to add more juice.
• To serve, spoon some curried pumpkin purée on a plate and top with the spicy lentils. Add cilantro, toasted pine nuts, and sliced red onions for some crunch!
• The pumpkin purée and green lentils will keep for up to 3 days in the refrigerator.

Notes

• If you want to make this recipe faster, feel free to use about 3 cups of canned pumpkin puree.

Nutrition

Serving: 1 serving | Calories: 391 kcal | Carbohydrates: 50.8 g | Protein: 17.4 g | Fat: 15.4 g | Fiber: 22.3 g | Sugar: 8.9 g

Course : Dinner, Entree, Main Course

Cuisine : American

Did you make this recipe? Tag @fullofplants on Instagram and hashtag it #fullofplants

About the Author

Thomas Pagot is the founder, photographer, and recipe developer behind Full of Plants. He created the blog in 2016 as a personal cookbook for vegan recipes. Through years of recipe development, Thomas has successfully grown Full of Plants into a trusted resource for plant-based recipes.

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