Guest Post by Katie from Frugal Femina
Did you panic when you heard there might be a pumpkin shortage? My stores have plenty, but the rumors made me wonder what I would do in a pinch. At first I thought, "I can live without pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving."
Then someone posted on Twitter about making their own pie filling from a real, live pumpkin {gasp!}. So I thought I'd give it a try. You know what? It's easy to do, and your kiddos will love scooping out the seeds. Check out these tips.
Pie pumpkins are smaller than the kind you might use for carving–usually about 6-8 inches each. Walmart sells them for $0.78/lb. I got them for $3/pumpkin at a pumpkin farm. I got 5, because pumpkins are about 90% water, and I wanted to make sure I had enough.
I ended up with so much puree I had to freeze some in a plastic container. I love pumpkin, though, and will definitely put it to good use!
Here's how I turned the pumpkins from the pumpkin farm into pumpkin puree:
When I got home, I washed the pumpkin with plain water.
Next, I cut the pumpkin in half with a large, serrated knife. I'm told
you're less likely to slip and cut yourself with a serrated knife. I
would much rather eat pumpkin than go to the ER. How 'bout you?
I scooped out the seeds/strings with an ice cream scoop. You can save the seeds to roast or plant next year. We did both.
I put the pumpkin halves in a dish with a couple of inches of water. I
didn't have a deep enough dish with a lid, so I just covered them with
a dish towel and microwaved them for 30 minutes. You can cook them in
the oven, but it takes a little longer.
The skin slid right off the pumpkin once it was cooked through.
Next, I pureed it in the food processor until it was smooth. It took a
minute or two. You'll want to drain off any free-standing water.
And now you're ready to bake!
Pumpkin Cookies
Pumpkin Coconut Bread
THE Pumpkin Dessert
Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal
Pumpkin Dinner Rolls (I served these with Cinnamon Honey Spread–1/2 cup softened butter or margarine blended with 1 cup powdered sugar,
1/4 cup honey, and
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon.)
Want more tips? Check out PickYourOwn.org. It's my favorite resource for all things preserving.
Katie is a pastor's wife, a stay-at-home mama of one little munchkin,
and a part-time nursing student. Her family lives in a little cabin on
a farm in Kentucky. Katie has been blogging since 2005, and she shares
fun and thrifty talk for a well-managed home at her latest project, Frugal Femina.