Japanese pumpkin recipes: savoury kabocha flans, and kabocha gratin

Kabocha, or Japanese pumpkin, is a winter squash that I find irresistible. It is a beautiful deep orange, mildly sweet and silky-smooth. The shell is very hard to penetrate, though, and cutting a whole squash is difficult. It's easiest to work with if you buy the squash in large pieces - either quartered or halved. When cooked, the green shell becomes soft and edible. Tempura chefs regularly fry sliced kabocha with the skin on. In the recipe for kabocha gratin, you can either remove the skin or leave it on.

Savoury kabocha flans (pictured)

I love vegetable flans, although some people find them odd because they're used to eating sweet custards, rather than savoury ones. Indeed, this one walks a fine line between sweet and savoury. To make them seem less like dessert, season the mixture liber- ally (but judiciously) with sage, paprika, cayenne and pepper.

For a dessert variation, omit the shallot, garlic, sage, paprika, pepper and cayenne, and mix the remaining ingredients with brown sugar to taste, plus ground spices such as cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg before baking as directed. Cool the custard to room temperature then refrigerate. When ready to serve, spread a thin layer of sugar over the top and use a propane (or butane) torch to caramelise the surface.

800 grams kabocha squash

30ml olive oil, plus extra for drizzling