Farm to Table Foodie Pumpkin Video and Recipe

The Pumpkin Patch!

Last weekend, Sari and I had an amazing day in the pumpkin patch. It was PERFECT weather and we got there before the parking lot filled up with hundreds of cars. The fields were full of pumpkins and the place was packed with families of all shapes and sizes running around the property. It was quite interesting to see that they also had Camel rides and a giraffe on site. Hmmmm... I wasn’t real sure what that was all about but the pumpkins were plentiful so that is all we cared about. Check out the video HERE and the recipes below. ENJOY!

WHY WOULD YOU BAKE A PUMPKIN?

You can make:

Pumpkin Seeds

Pumpkin Soup

Pumpkin Bars, Pie, Scones, Pancakes

Pumpkin Risotto

Pumpkin Ravioli

Pumpkin puree can substitute oil in baking. Use a 1:1 ratio

Freeze the puree in 2 cup portions if you aren’t going to use it all.

DIRECTIONS FOR BAKING A PUMPKIN:

BAKING WHOLE: Wash the pumpkin and place it right on the oven rack with some foil on the bottom rack under the pumpkin to catch any drippings. Bake at 350 degrees for 60-90 minutes depending on the size. Then cut in half and scoop out the guts in the middle. Use the flesh for puree.

BAKING IN HALVES: Cut the Pumpkin in half and scoop out the seeds and guts. Place the halves face down in a shallow pan filled with about about 1/2 inch of water. Bake at 350 degress for 35-60 minutes. To check, insert a knife through the skin and when it slides through easily, the pumpkin is cooked.

ROASTING THE SEEDS:

Rinse the seeds and release them from the pumpkin guts. Lay on a paper towel to dry. After the seeds have dried spread them on a baking sheet and season with: honey and cinnamon, salt and cayenne, parmesan and italian seasoning, etc. Bake at 400 for 15-20 minutes. You may want to shake them up during the baking process.

FEATURED RECIPE:

Pumpkin Mousse

2 cups fresh pumpkin puree

1 ¼ cup macadamia nuts or cashews

12 dates

1 ¼ cup almond milk or other non-dairy milk

Pumpkin Spices

2 t cinnamon

1 ½ t nutmeg

½ t ginger

Bake a small/medium pie pumpkin. Scrape out the flesh and set aside. While waiting for the pumpkin to cook soak the nuts in the almond milk for a couple hours (Soaking overnight is recommended if using a regular blender). Soak the dates in hot water for about 20 then drained. Blend all ingredients in a high-powered blender until smooth.

*You can eat this mousse alone or put it into a date/nut crust, pie crust, tart crust, make parfaits or freeze as an ice cream.