Sliced Beef and Acorn Squash Quinoa Bowls with Spicy Buttermilk Dressing

After a weekend of late nights, Champagne drinking and cake eating, a girl needs her quinoa and her woolly socks and Homeland.

Sliced Beef and Acorn Squash Quinoa Bowls with Spicy Buttermilk Dressing
Serves 4

150g white quinoa
400g beef fillet
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, plus a little extra for frying
1/2 teaspoon chilli powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon sea salt flakes
3 acorn squash, cut into wedges
1 red onion, finely sliced
1 red capsicum, cut into this strips
2 ears of corn, kernels removed
1 x 400g black beans, drain and rinsed

For the Spicy Buttermilk Dressing:
1 jalapeno, roughly chopped
1 chilli in adobo sauce, with 1 tablespoon of the adobo sauce
1 clove garlic, roughly chopped
1 tablespoon lime juice
2 spring onions, roughly chopped
Sea salt flakes to taste
1/4 cup coriander leaves, roughly chopped
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon paprika
2 tablespoons buttermilk
1/4 cup Greek yoghurt
1/4 cup mayonnaise

To Serve: 
Spring onions, finely sliced
Avocado, sliced
Coriander leaves
Lime Juice
Barbecue sauce


Slice the beef very finely and place into a bowl. Sprinkle in the chilli powder, cumin, oregano, smoked paprika and salt. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and mix to coat. Set aside to marinate in the refrigerator for 2 hours.

Cook the Quinoa:
Rinse the quinoa and then place it in a large saucepan with 2 cups of cold water. Bring to the boil, then lower the heat to simmer. Cover the pan and cook for 12-15 until the water is absorbed. Remove from the heat. Keep warm.

Make the Spicy Buttermilk Dressing:
Put all the ingredients into a blender and blitz until smooth.

Cook the Beef:
Heat a large frying pan to hot and add a little oil to the pan. Add the beef and fry briefly, tossing just to brown the beef, but do not over cook. Remove the beef to a plate.

Add a little more oil to the frying pan if necessary and add all the vegetables. Fry until the vegetables have softened and turn golden at the edges. Add the beef back to the pan and toss everything together.

Assemble the Quinoa Bowls:
Divide the quinoa between four deep bowls. Spoon the beef and acorn squash mixture over the quinoa. Pour the spicy buttermilk dressing over and top with sliced, spring onion, avocado, coriander leaves, lime juice and a big drizzle of your favourite barbecue sauce.