Casserole

A hearty, chicken casserole with chunky seasonal vegetables, served with roasted butternut squash, rustic style mash on the side.

A great value, low fat/calorie recipe, perfect for those dark, cold winter days. A good alternative to Sunday Lunch also!

Serves 4-6 | 5 ProPoints/300 Calories per portion (approx)

Ingredients
2 large butternut squash
4 chicken breasts (medium size, skinless)
1 tsp mustard seeds (optional) 
2 bayleaves (optional)
4 leeks (large)
1 swede (small to medium)
4 carrots (medium to large)
1/2 cabbage
2 stock cubes (chicken or vegetable)
1 tspn mixed herbs
Water (boiled from the kettle)
1/2 tspn cayenne pepper
1 tspn garlic powder/granules 
Salt & pepper

Method
1) Peel, deseed and chop the butternut squash into 1-2cm cubes. Place on a baking tray and squirt on a few sprays of 1Cal oil. Sprinkle on a pinch of salt and black pepper then mix thoroughly so all the cubes are coated. Bake in a preheated 180 Celsius oven for around 30 minutes, or until the squash is soft and beginning to crisp at the edges. Turn the cubes at least once during cooking. If the squash finishes cooking before the rest of the meal, turn the oven off, then turn back on for 5-10 minutes to warm back through when everything else is ready.

2) Finely slice the leeks, having removed any tough leaves, and gently fry in a large saucepan (make sure you have the lid!), along with the bayleaves (optional) and mustard seeds (optional), until the leeks begin to soften. Add a dash of water if the leeks start to stick to the bottom of the pan.

3) Cut the chicken breasts into 2cm cubes and add to the pan of leeks and continue frying gently until the chicken begins to brown slightly, stirring occasionally.

4) Peel the swede and chop into 1cm cubes. Wash the carrots, and cut into circles. Chop the cabbage into thin shreds. Add all the vegetables to the pan and stir. Add the 2 stock cubes to the pan and pour over boiling water from the kettle until the water covers the chicken and vegetables. Add the mixed herbs and stir thoroughly. Bring to a gentle simmer and place the lid on the saucepan. Cook for about 40-45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is cooked through and the vegetables are soft. Add salt and pepper to taste. If you want the casserole thicker, remove the lid about 20 minutes before the end of cooking.

6) Remove the warm butternut squash from the oven and transfer onto a chopping board. Sprinkle on the garlic powder/granules, cayenne pepper and salt and pepper to taste. Chop roughly with a large knife, using the side of the blade to occasionally mash down any bigger chunks. Don't chop/mash too much - the squash needs to be quite chunky and rustic.

7) To serve, portion out the butternut squash mash between 4 people, then ladle the casserole onto each plate - remove the bayleaves if you used them!

Notes/Ideas
This recipe makes more than enough for four and there should be some casserole left for a small second helping and even some for the next day! Invite some friends! Why not freeze it for another day?

Instead of making butternut squash mash, you can peel, deseed and chop the squash into 2cm cubes and add to the casserole with the rest of the vegetables.

If you want to add more carbohydrate to the meal, leave out the butternut squash completely and peel and cut 100g of potato per person into 2cm cubes and add with the rest of the vegetables. This will add another 80-100 calories or 2 ProPoints per person to the meal.

Use lean pieces of beef instead of chicken. Cooking time will increase slightly, as well as calories and ProPoints. Refer to the beef packaging.