Sunday, November 20, 2011

Pumpkins aren't just for Halloween

Until this year, I'd never cooked a pumpkin. But so far this fall, I've cooked two! And my oh my they are one delicious vegetable. I picked up my latest one at the Ottawa Organic Farmers' Market on Saturday.

Cooking pumpkin or any kind of squash is so unbelievably simple:
  • Cut in two with a large knife (be careful, they're hard!)
  • Scoop out the "innards"
  • Lay face down in a baking dish with a bit of water (1/4 to 1/2 inch)
  • Bake at 350F for 45 minutes or so (depends on the size) until it's soft
Roasted pumpkin. Ready to peel.
  • Let it cool for a quick bit and peel off the skin
  • There you have it, amazing, delicious, nutrient-dense pumpkin!
Depending on what you're using it for, the instructions can change here. I like mine pureed, so I cut the peeled, roasted pumpkin up into large chunks, and tossed it in the food processor to puree.

Pureed pumpkin.
Keeps in the fridge for a few days, or freeze it for later use.

Pumpkin is a great source of fiber, very low in sugar, an amazing source of vitamin A due to it's rich colour and full of lots of other nutrients that are oh so good for the bod, including vitamin C, iron, and B vitamins.

So now what do you do with your pumpkin... Well a few ideas for you. Some tried and tested, some recipes to come this week, to use up that gorgeous bowl of orange goodness.

Here's how they look. They taste AMAZING.
Chia Pumpkin Muffins! Mmm tasty. A few changes to the recipe, as I have a slightly different paper version:
  • I used 2 tablespoons of ground chia, instead of one.
  • I used 1/2 cup brown rice flour and 1/2 cup of quinoa flour to make up the 1 cup of flour.
  • I used arrowroot flour instead of tapioca and only 1/4 cup.
  • I substituted the agave for raw honey, still at 1/2 cup.
  • I lowered the amount of maple syrup to just 1/4 cup.

 
Other great ideas for pumpkin (that I have tried or will be trying):

Have you any creative and good ideas for using the very stellar pumpkin?

3 comments:

  1. It's been a while since I've cooked my own pumpkin for baking, but I used to strain the pumpkin after I pureed it - before using it in recipes. That made it much denser and flavorful. I had a fabulous pumpkin-chocolate cake that someone once said should be nominated for an award.

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  2. It's definitely the season! Am very curious about the butternut squash brownies! Covenant Farm was just blogging about their week long cooking adventure with one big squash:
    http://covenantfarm.ca/a-squash-story/

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  3. @Urban Girl. The recipe link is there. They are amazing, gooey brownies and an easy go-to recipe.

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