Today, I want to speak from the "pulp-it." I want to encourage you to dig into the flesh of an edible pumpkin and pull out a delicious and versatile homemade staple. You can take a pie pumpkin straight from the field, separate the flesh and seeds from the skin, and walk away with Pumpkin Puree to freeze and Roasted Pumpkin Seeds to snack on and share immediately! The puree will serve you well far beyond a pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving. Use it in baked goods such as quick breads, cakes, and muffins for extra moist results. Toss it in a sauce or stuff it into a pasta. Or, add it to waffle or pancake batter. The results may not lead to a religious experience, but they remind me to be grateful for the harvest and the land that produced it. Not bad for a bit of effort in regards to one small gourd.
Pumpkin Puree and Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
Halve a pie pumpkin. Scoop out seeds and pulp; set aside.
Place pumpkin halves (face side down) in a baking pan with half an inch of
water. Bake at 375˚F for 1 hour until flesh is softened. Remove from baking pan
and place face side up to cool. Remove flesh with a large spoon and cover
tightly to store. A 3½ to 4 pound pie pumpkin will give you about 4 cups of
pumpkin puree.
While pumpkin bakes, separate pumpkin seeds from the pulp,
rinsing thoroughly under running water in a fine mesh sieve to remove as much
pulp as possible. Drain well. Place seeds on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle
lightly with olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt. Combine with your hands and
spread out evenly in a single layer. Bake at 350˚F for 10 minutes. Stir with a
spatula, spreading out seeds evenly across sheet once again. Bake an additional
10 minutes. Cool prior to eating.
NOTE: You can vary the flavor of the oil and salt to taste.
Add soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, or hot sauce. Or, go for a sweet and salty
flavor by adding a bit of brown sugar, honey, cinnamon, nutmeg, and/or ground
cloves. Be creative!
