Anna Jones’ winter salad recipes

For me, it’s OK to eat a salad in winter if it has carbs in it. Namely, bread: torn craggy pieces or golden crumbs with soft, roast winter roots and herbs. Today’s recipes are a great way to make the most of any stale or leftover bread, and are halfway between a salad and a traybake – equally good eaten piping hot from the oven or at room temperature a little later. Winter means carbs in my house – even in a salad.

Roast pumpkin and pistachio gremolata (pictured above)

These honeyed breadcrumbs are my new favourite topping. Here, they are baked with the squash for extra crispness, and this recipe works with almost any root veg.

Prep 30 min
Cook 50 min
Serves 4-6

1 medium pumpkin (approx 1kg), deseeded, skin on and cut into 2cm wedges
1 garlic bulb, unpeeled
3 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp red-wine vinegar
Salt and black pepper

For the breadcrumb gremolata
1 small bunch parsley
1 fresh red chilli, deseeded
30g shelled pistachios
75g breadcrumbs
Zest of 1 unwaxed lemon
1 tbsp runny honey
3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for serving
Salt and black pepper

To serve
250g natural yoghurt

Heat the oven to 190C (170C)/gas 5. Put the pumpkin wedges into a large baking tray, add the garlic bulb, olive oil, vinegar and salt and pepper, then toss until evenly coated. If the baking tray is overcrowded, split the pumpkin between two trays so it sits in a single layer. Roast for 35-40 minutes, until the pumpkin is soft and golden around the edges.

For the gremolata, roughly chop the parsley, chilli and pistachios, and put in a bowl with the remaining gremolata ingredients. Mix so everything is coated in the oil and honey.

Remove the tray from the oven and sprinkle the gremolata evenly over the pumpkin. Return the tray to the oven and roast for a further five to 10 minutes, until the pumpkin is soft and the breadcrumbs are golden.

When cool enough to handle, squeeze out the soft garlic flesh from the bulb and either mix into the natural yoghurt, or simply squeeze straight on to the plate, so you have sweet, soft garlic alongside the pumpkin.

Serve with the yoghurt and a lemon-dressed salad, and top with a final drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil.

Winter panzanella

View image in fullscreen

A winter version of my all-time favourite salad. While there’s no beating the traditional tomato one, swapping in winter roots and roast shallots brings a welcome juiciness.

Prep 25 min
Cook 35 min
Serves 4-6

4 banana shallots, peeled and halved
4 garlic cloves, unpeeled
200g red grapes
400g root vegetables, chopped into rough 2cm chunks
Olive oil
Salt and black pepper
150g sourdough bread, torn into 2cm chunks
2 sprigs sage, leaves picked
1 small bunch parsley, leaves picked and stalks finely chopped
2 tbsp baby capers
350g winter greens (kale, sprout tops or purple sprouting broccoli)

For the dressing
1 tsp dijon mustard
½ unwaxed lemon: juice and zest
4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

Heat the oven to 190C (170C)/gas 5. Put the shallots, garlic cloves, grapes and root vegetables into a large baking tray, then add two tablespoons of olive oil and some salt and pepper. Roast for 25 minutes, until the root veg is starting to soften.

Remove the tray from the oven and add the sourdough, sage, parsley stalks and capers, and toss. Add two more tablespoons of oil and bake for a further 10 minutes, until everything is tender and golden, adding the greens for the last five minutes.

In a jar or small bowl, shake or whisk together the dressing ingredients, then pour over the tray, scatter with the parsley leaves, toss and serve.