Pumpkin Sale
The last five pumpkins of the season sit outside our window, orange against brilliant yellow leaves that fell from the sweet maple onto the deck. We grow our own pumpkins, but if we did not, this is the time I’d go pumpkin shopping. The Halloween thing is over and pumpkins are on sale. No one is looking to carve jack o’ lanterns and most folks do not realize they can find food inside the pumpkin; lot’s of food.
Most people only know pumpkins in the sweet brown custard of pumpkin pie and this limits their enjoyment of this late fall bounty. Some foods have a sweet nature, some a savory nature and some have both. Pumpkin falls into the later category. Inside every pumpkin, hidden from sight, lies pale orange flesh waiting for your cooking skills. Instead of simply baking pie (usually made from a tin that lacks real pumpkin) wander to the savory side of the large orange sister: pumpkin soup, pumpkin quiche and pumpkin lasagna are three of may dishes you can explore. If you want to ride the sweet side, go beyond pie, explore pumpkin bread, pumpkin muffins and pumpkin cake. If you buy and process one or three pumpkins, you’ll have plenty for your experiments. Pumpkin is a highly versatile, delicious food, inexpensive and nutritious. I wish I’d known about pumpkins when I was younger. It would have altered many instant noodle nights into something better.
You can easily process pumpkin for cooking. You need a strong knife, a cookie sheet, some foil. a potato masher and a spoon. First, you need to get some pumpkins. Try to find the small, spherical pumpkins that are between the size of a bowling ball and a soccer ball. If they are called sugar pumpkins, they are an heirloom with wonderful, sweet flavor. Another great pumpkin is a larger, flying saucer shaped pumpkin called Cinderella. This too comes from heirloom seeds. Larger, by twice, than the sugar pumpkin, the flavor of Cinderella is a delight. And if you are needing a carriage at midnight, this is the pumpkin to give the fairy godmother. If you cannot find sugar or Cinderella pumpkins, get what you can; smaller usually better than large. Lift the pumpkin. It should seem heavy, meaning it has ample flesh. Knock on the side. It should have a healthy thump and not sound hollow. Pumpkins that sound like drums sound that way because they are woody inside.
Take the pumpkin home and split it in two. This will prove easier or more difficult depending on your knife, strength and size. Use a sharp knife, but take care. The pumpkin has a tough skin and will take some effort to split. A safe and simple approach is to cut a hole in the top, about six inches across, around the stem. You can lift this away using the stem as a handle. Then, cut down one side of the pumpkin as far as you can. Aften one side has been cut to the bottom, cut down the side opposite the first cut. With these cuts, you should be able to separate the pumpkin into two manageable halves. Scoop out the seeds and the stringy stuff in the center. Set the seeds aside. You can salt and roast them later for a treat. Once both halves are cleaned, cut them in half so you have four, easy to handle quarters. Line a cookie sheet with foil or parchment paper. Wrap each quarter with foil and bake in a pre-heated, 350 degree oven for an hour. After the first hour, you can poke the flesh with a fork. If the fork easily goes to the skin, the pumpkin is done. If not, let it cook awhile longer.
After the pumpkin passes the fork test, take it out of the oven and let it cool. When the pumpkin is cool enough to handle, scoop the flesh off the skin and put it in a bowl. Mash it with a potato masher or run it through a food mill. You could blend it our use a food processor but both machines tend to slice rather than strain or mash so the texture will not be as nice.
If the puree seems too wet, you can pour off a bit of the liquid. It should have some body, like thick oatmeal. When you have a good texture, scoop 2 cups into a labeled freezer bag. Then two cups into another freezer bag. Repeat until you have it measured and packed. Put the freezer bags into your freezer. If you flatten them into tile shapes, they’ll freeze that way and be easy to stack. The pumpkin will keep for 6 months or more in the freezer. When you need some for a recipe, grab a bag or two. You know each bag has two cups, so getting the right amount will be a snap. Let it thaw and use it like fresh.
You are now ready to experiment with pumpkin. Good pumpkin. Much better than canned pumpkin.
copyright 2005 Chromia Poetics
