Roast Butternut and Prosciutto Salad

There are few vegetables that can pendulum between savoury and sweet with the effortless dependability of butternut. It’s a nothing fancy, year-round veggie staple. When I’m rushed, which at this time of year is the norm, defaulting to roast butternut is the most sensible solution to hands-free cooking. For this Roast Butternut and Prosciutto Salad, I’ve added creamy goat’s cheese, rocket and toasty pine nuts for textural crunch. Pulling the whole affair together? A lemony Caesar Truffle Dressing with Black Truffle Honey.  Not too shabby for a weeknight in.

The making of a really good salad is the dressing. It needs to flatter and compliment. Whether it’s a drizzle or dressing, or in some instances both, one citrusy, the other a creamy element, salads need that extra push to be swoon-worthy. Here, the truffle infused dressing is guaranteed to support flavour elevation. Over the next couple of weeks I’ll be sharing a host of stellar recipes using Stonebarn’s exquisite range of Truffle products, imported by The Truffle Lady (SA). They’re completely classy, as you’d expect when mingling in truffle circles. Stonebarn is available from select Pick n Pay Stores, Super Spars, The Culinary Table and fine food deli’s.

Cook’s note: For a vegetarian option, omit the prosciutto and replace with roast red peppers and crispy chickpeas. Candied roast tomatoes are excellent too.

Roast Butternut & Prosciutto Salad with Goat’s Cheese & Pine Nuts

Serves 4-6

• olive oil, for roasting
• 1 butternut (900 g) deseeded and cut into wedges
• 5 ml (1 teaspoon) dried oregano
• 70 g (6 slithers) prosciutto
• 80 g arugula
• 125 g goat’s cheese
• 50 g pine nuts, toasted

Dressing

• 60 ml (1/4 cup) Stonebarn Caesar Dressing (Imported by The Truffle Lady SA)
• 45 ml (3 tablespoons) extra virgin olive oil
• 10 ml (2 teaspoons) Dijon mustard
• 10 ml (2 teaspoons) Stonebarn Truffle Honey (Imported by The Truffle Lady SA)
• 30 ml (2 tablespoons) lemon juice
• salt and freshly cracked black pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 200 C.
2. Arrange the butternut on a large roasting tray. Drizzle with olive oil and season with oregano, salt and black pepper. Roast for 45-50 minutes until tender and slightly charred on the edges.
3. For the dressing, place all the ingredients in a small bowl and whisk to combine.
4. To assemble the salad, lay the arugula on a serving plate. Spoon over a tablespoon of dressing and toss to coat. Arrange the butternut and prosciutto on top. Drizzle with the remaining truffle dressing.
5. Crumble over the goat’s cheese and scatter with pine nuts.

For butternut fans, here are several blog favourites:

Barley risotto with Kale and Butternut

Roast Butternut Crustless Quiche

Black rice salad with balsamic beets and butternut