Balkabaklı Mercimek | Turkish Lentil Salad with Pumpkin

Preheat the oven to 200 °C top/bottom heat. Thoroughly wash the Hokkaido pumpkin, halve it, remove the seeds, and cut into approx. 1.5 cm bite-sized cubes. Spread the pumpkin cubes on a baking sheet lined with baking paper, drizzle with 2 tbsp of the olive oil, and season with a little salt, pepper, and half of the ground cumin. Roast in the oven for approx. 20–25 minutes until the pumpkin is tender and lightly browned at the edges.

While the pumpkin roasts in the oven, rinse the lentils in a sieve under cold water. Bring to a boil in a pot with twice the amount of unsalted water and simmer gently for approx. 20 minutes until al dente. Then drain and let the steam evaporate briefly.

For the dressing, halve the lemon and squeeze out the juice. Peel the garlic clove and finely grate or mince it. Whisk the lemon juice with the remaining 2 tbsp of olive oil, the minced garlic, the remaining cumin, salt, and pepper in a small bowl into an aromatic vinaigrette.