Ingredients

• ½ butternut squash
• diced
• 2 garlic cloves
• unpeeled
• olive oil
• salt and pepper
• 100ml/3½fl oz vegetable stock
• 2 jumbo quails
• spatchcocked
• 2-3 tbsp thin bacon lardons
• 1 shallot
• finely chopped
• 150ml/5½fl oz brown chicken stock
• 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1 tsp chopped rosemary
• 4 tbsp cooked lentils
• 1 handful frisée salad leaves

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 190C/375F/Gas 5.
• Take four tablespoons of the diced butternut squash and blanch for 2-3 minutes
• or until cooked but still firm.
• Put the remaining butternut squash in a roasting tin with the garlic cloves and a little olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 20 minutes
• or until very soft.
• Transfer to a blender and add half the vegetable stock and two tablespoons of olive oil. Blend to a smooth purée
• adding more stock if necessary. Taste and add more salt and pepper as required.
• Season the spatchcocked quails with a little salt. Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in an ovenproof pan and brown the quail on all sides. This will only take 2-3 minutes.
• Put the pan into the oven and roast for about four minutes. Remove from the oven and rest for five minutes. Check the meat is cooked through – the juices should run clear when the meat is cut into. The breast and legs might need more cooking. If so you can finish cooking them in the sauce.
• Use the same pan to fry the lardons until crisp then set them aside. Fry the shallots until softened
• add the chicken stock and cook until reduced in volume to a thick sauce (add the quail breasts and legs here if they need to cook a bit more). Put the cooked bacon back into the pan and add the vinegar and cooked lentils.
• Fry the four tablespoons of blanched butternut squash in a little oil until golden-brown. Season with salt
• pepper and the chopped rosemary.
• Spread some purée on each serving plate
• add some pieces of butternut squash
• lardons and lentils then the quail
• and the salad leaves. Serve a little extra sauce on the side.