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It might come as a surprise to many readers, but I do not particularly enjoy of dal. There were just two types that I enjoyed, and each were prepared by my mum: a citrus-coconut variety, the other a long-simmered black dal with cream. But now a new quick-cook dal has made it into my hall of fame. And the secret? Blitzing it until perfectly creamy, then serving with roast squash and addictive chilli cashews. It’s a game-changer that’s now on my regular menu.

Citrus Lentils with Baked Pumpkin and Chilli Cashews

Prep 15 minutes
Cook 30 minutes
Serves two

600 grams butternut squash flesh, diced into 1-centimeter cubes
1 tbsp light-tasting oil
Sea salt flakes
One tsp freshly ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
150g red lentils, rinsed well
One clove of garlic, skin removed
½ tsp turmeric powder
Juice of 1-2 limes, to taste
1 teaspoon dairy butter
Fresh cilantro leaves, for garnish

For the Spiced Nuts

60g cashews
One tsp neutral oil, or olive oil
¼ tsp chilli flakes

Preheat the oven to 220C (200C fan)/425F/mark 7. Place the diced pumpkin, cooking oil, a tsp of sea salt, and the coriander powder and cumin into a baking tray big enough to hold all the vegetables in a single layer, and toss thoroughly to cover. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until tender and beginning to brown.

At the same time, put the lentils in a large pan with 500ml just-boiled water, the garlic clove and the turmeric spice, and heat until boiling. Cover partly, reduce the heat and cook gently, mixing now and then, for 20-25 minutes, until the lentils have softened.

Mix the cashews, cooking oil, chilli and a generous pinch of salt in a small baking tray. When the pumpkin has 8 minutes left, place the nut tray in the same oven; by the time the pumpkin is done, the nuts should be perfectly roasted.

Stir the lentils and season with lime juice and sea salt to taste. You will need quite a lot of each: think of the dal as a totally neutral base (I used the juice of two limes and I hate to admit how much seasoning!). Continue tweaking and tasting until you’re satisfied with the seasoning, then stir in the butter.

The last touch, which takes this dish to the next stage, is to blitz the dal (and the garlic) in batches in a high-speed blender. Taste again – it should be just right.

Divide the dal between two dishes, top with the roast squash and chilli cashews, scatter over the cilantro and serve hot with rice and/or flatbreads.