Recipe Of The Day   Honey Pumpkin Salad with Sage Croutons This unusual salad is a wonderful starter to the meal. Toasted bread slices are rubbed with sage and pumpkinseed oil, then topped with vinegary apples, honey-roasted pumpkin salad and finely chopped persimmons.   1   sugar pumpkin or butternut squash (1 1/2 pounds), peeled, seeded and cut into 1-inch dice   1/4 cup   honey   2 Tbs   unsalted butter, melted   Eight 1/2   inch-thick slices of country bread     Roasted pumpkin seed oil, for brushing   5   sage leaves   1/4 cup   pumpkin seeds   1   Granny Smith apple, halved, cored and thinly sliced   2 Tbs   apple cider vinegar   1   Fuyu persimmon, peeled and finely chopped (optional)     1 Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. In a bowl, toss the pumpkin with the honey and the melted butter. Spread the pumpkin on a rimmed baking sheet and roast for about 35 minutes, or just until tender; let cool. 2 Arrange the bread on a cookie sheet and bake in the oven with the pumpkin for about 5 minutes, or until lightly toasted. Brush the toasts generously with pumpkin seed oil and rub with the sage leaves. Spread the pumpkin seeds in a pie plate; toast in the oven for about 3 minutes, or until fragrant. 3 In a bowl, toss the apple with 1/2 tablespoon of the vinegar. In another bowl, toss the pumpkin with the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons of vinegar. Season both with salt and pepper. To Serve 1 Set a crouton on each plate and top with the apple slices. Spoon the pumpkin salad and chopped persimmon over the apple slices. Garnish with the toasted pumpkin seeds and serve.   Servings: 8   Nutrition Facts Serving size: 1 serving Percent daily values based on a 2000 calorie diet. Nutrition information provided by the recipe author.           Amount Per Serving       Calories   215.00   Calories From Fat   62.00       % Daily Value Total Fat 7.00g   10%   Cholesterol 8.00mg   2%   Sodium 141.00mg   5%   Carbohydrates 36.00g   12%   Dietary Fiber 4.00g   16%   Protein 4.00g   8%     Recipe Type Salad, Vegetarian   Recipe Source Source: Food & Wine Magazine   Recipe formatted with Living Cookbook Recipe Software. Download a free trial from www.livingcookbook.com. To download this recipe, right-click here and choose Save Target As from the popup menu. Add a free recipe of the day to your web site.

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