Meat Free Monday One day a week can make a world of difference

Loaded Pumpkin Nachos

Meat Free Monday
  • Serves: 4
  • Preparation: 10
  • Cooking: 30
  • Ready: 40

A fun and festive crowd-pleaser that everyone can dig into!

Ingredients

  • 1 medium pumpkin or butternut squash
  • 2-3 bags of corn tortilla chips, roughly 400 g

Optional toppings

  • ½ jar pickled jalapenos
  • pickled onions
  • red chillies

For the guacamole

  • 2 avocados
  • ½ red onion, finely diced
  • 1 lime
  • bunch of coriander, stems finely chopped
  • olive oil
  • salt
  • pepper

For the salsa

  • 4 large tomatoes or 1 pack, roughly 300-400g of cherry tomatoes
  • 1 red chilli, finely diced
  • ½ red onion, finely diced
  • 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
  • olive oil

For the cheesy sauce

  • 150 g of cashews
  • 250 ml of plant milk
  • 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 clove of garlic
  • ¼ teaspoon turmeric
  • 1 tablespoon jalapeno brine (from the jar, if using) OR 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

Method

Start by boiling the kettle and soaking your cashews in just boiled water whilst you prep your pumpkin or butternut squash.

Cut the pumpkin carefully into small chunks, peeling it to remove the skin first if the skin is particularly tough or dirty. Spread the chunks out on a baking tray, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and smoked paprika and roast in the oven at 180C°/350°F/gas mark 4 for 20 minutes until golden and cooked through with crispy edges.

Meanwhile, prepare your guacamole and salsa. Carefully open, slice and mash the avocados in a small bowl. Finally dice the red onion and add half of this to the avocado mix. Finely chop the coriander stems and add these to the mix. Add the juice of one lime, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, a large pinch of salt and pepper and season to taste. You can add extra lime or extra olive oil if you like it creamier.

For the tomato salsa, finely chop the tomatoes with all their juices and add to a small bowl with the chopped chilli, ½ of the diced red onion, a splash of red wine vinegar and olive oil, and a pinch of salt and pepper.

Now your cashews have had a chance to soften, drain the water away and add them to a high-speed blender along with all the other ingredients for the sauce. You want the mixture to be nice and thick, you may need to add a drizzle of olive oil midway through to help it blend. Check for seasoning, if you want it tangier add more jalapeno brine, or if you want it spicier, you could add some cayenne pepper or hot smoked paprika here.

Once your pumpkin is roasted and golden, remove it from the oven and start to layer up your nachos.

To a large baking dish, add about ⅓ of your corn tortilla chips, followed by a sprinkling of the red tomato salsa, pickled jalapenos, extra chillies if you’re using them, followed by a ⅓ of the chunks of pumpkin. Drizzle over ⅓ of the creamy cheesy sauce and repeat this for 2 more layers of nachos so you have 3 in total with the ingredients evenly dispersed for maximum enjoyment.

Pop your loaded tray of nachos back in the oven for 10 minutes or so until the cheesy sauce is golden and bubbling and your nachos are toasted and warmed through. Keep an eye on it so the top layer doesn’t burn or colour too much.

Once they’re out of the oven, finish with the guacamole and sprinkle with the coriander leaves. Serve with leftover guacamole and any of the remaining cheesy sauce on the side for dipping.

Additional notes

Recipe and video created for Meat Free Monday by Alexis Tymon

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