Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Recipe Club: Oven Roasted Pumpkins


There is a possibility this could be ooooold news but...I didn't know how to roast pumpkins until this year. Anyone else go 30+ years not knowing?
Back home, when a recipe called for pumpkin I just knew the right spot to pick up a can in grocery aisle. Everyone knows the famous can of Libby Pumpkin! 
Then we moved to Europe and canned pumpkin is unheard of so I had to do a bit of research. No joke. 
Now days, cans of Libby Pumpkin are left in our pantry for "special occasions", aka Thanksgiving. (You don't mess with grandma's pumpkin pie) 

During autumn, I use pure pumpkin puree in soups, breads, and cookies. Here are the basics for roasting pumpkins in the oven:
Step 3: Carefully cut pumpkin into halves or quarters.
Step 4: Scoop away the seeds. I always save these to roast later on!



Step 5: Drizzle with a dash of olive oil. I always make sure the oil is spread around the pumpkin insides using a paper towel. 



Step 7: Let cool. Please excuse my "late at night" cooling picture.


Step 8: Scrap out the flesh and discard the skin. I have heard you can actually eat the skin but I am "not quite there yet". This is about how much of the pumpkin actually gets thrown away.


When I remove the pumpkin flesh from the skin, I add it to a large mixing bowl. After I have as much pumpkin goodness as I can get, I stir the bowl. This allows the pumpkin to mash. 


























Then I divide the pumpkin puree into air tight containers. I keep two cups of puree in the refrigerator for immediate use. The remaining two cups I store in the freezer. In my experience, each pumpkin has around 4 cups of puree after roasting.

I know Grandma always used canned pumpkin, so Momma used canned pumpkin, which is why I used canned pumpkin...but now seeing how easy it actually is to get pumpkin puree, I doubt I will go back to the cans.
Unless of course it's to make Grandma's Pumpkin Pie!

Have you tried making your own pumpkin puree?



Beautiful Eating,







Linking up with Momfessional's today for the monthly Recipe Club!
Recipe Club

3 comments:

  1. I have never done this but it looks easy enough. I love pumpkin soup and roasted would add a lot of flavor. thanks for the lesson!
    Debbie

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    Replies
    1. Husband even used it to make a pumpkin risotto! I'll probably roast another one this weekend!

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  2. This is wonderful Maren. We don't have Libby's Down Under either, but I may have had a few shipped over. :)
    The first time I made pumpkin bread though I spent quite some time cutting away the peel and softening in the microwave, your recipe looks much easier. I'll have to try that next time.

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