I am still dealing with my bumper pumpkin crop. I have given dozens away, driving around with them rolling around in the back of my car, encouraging others to roast, cook, carve, and decorate! It’s funny how such a crop can seem like a burden….I refuse to waste them! But now I see them as a gift, a gift to share with people whose paths cross mine. A gift enjoyed by our friends, family, a local classroom, clients, qigong group, yoga teacher, and neighbours. By passing on our pumpkins, we are giving all who receive them energy from our family and our part of the earth: each pumpkin is infused with love! Every pie pulled out of the oven, trick-or-treat-er, and licked soup bowl will be a connection of our energy with pumpkin benefactors and their extended others and back to us!
The best part is that we have been receiving emails and photos of our friends and their families carving pumpkins, baking pies in their ovens, writing out muffin recipes, and displaying scary Jack-o-lanterns! What a reward! My family planted the seeds, Mountain Man hilled and weeded, and my mother-in-law and I nurtured them along. All of us toured the garden regularly; peeking under the large leaves to see what was hiding there, getting more and more excited as the crop grew. We normally harvest about 10 pumpkins a season and use them all for carving. This year we expanded a bit and put in a couple more hills, but conditions were prime this year and lo and behold…pumpkin-a-rama!
Enjoy our pumpkins, people! And if you can’t enjoy them in the flesh, enjoy a pumpkin recipe or two! Oh, and did I mention that fall and early winter are the best times of the year to be eating yellow and orange vegetables?
Curried Pumpkin Soup
For this recipe, I made four batches over the course of three weeks to get it perfected. The bonus: we look like we are sporting nice tans! For a printable version click here.
2 Tbsp. coconut oil or butter
1 onion, chopped
1 c. chopped carrots
2 large cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp. minced fresh ginger
3 tsp. curry powder
3 c. vegetable broth
4 c. pumpkin, cooked (I suggest real but you could also use 2 cans canned pumpkin)
1 can coconut milk
½ tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. of brown sugar
½ lemon, squeezed
Fresh ground pepper
Heat oil or butter in large saucepan over medium heat until hot. Add onion, carrot, garlic, ginger, and curry powder. Cook until carrots are soft, 5 to 8 minutes.
Pour in broth and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in pumpkin, coconut milk, salt, and sugar, and lemon. Cook 2 minutes. Transfer to a blender or food processor and purée until very smooth.
Return to pan and heat through.
TIP: Add a dollop of yogurt or sour cream in the center of each bowl and scatter on some cilantro.
Pumpkin pie for reals!
For a printable version click here.
Warning! This is not some holistic nutritionist’s attempt at making pumpkin pie healthy by substituting the fat for apple sauce and the sugar for stevia; this is the real deal! This is a rare treat in my house, but oh-so-savoured! Enjoy!
This recipe is adapted from the Joy of Cooking (I know it’s sacrilege to adapt anything from this book, but I’ll take my chances). The recipe said this would make one 9-inch pie. I doubled it, though and got three out of it.
Cook your pumpkin by washing it, cutting it in half, cleaning out the seeds and strings, and placing face-down on a cookie sheet with a bit of water to steam it. Bake at 350º for about 20 minutes or until the flesh is soft when pierced with a fork. Let it cool slightly, then scrape out the pulp and put into a food processor or blender. Process until smooth. Be careful: this is where I can’t stop eating warm pumpkin straight out of the processor! I have learned to make extra!
Ingredients
Enough pie dough to line one 9-inch pie plate (this recipe is also from the Joy of Cooking; again I doubled everything and got three pies)
2 c. cooked pumpkin (yes you can use canned, but don’t – just call me for a pumpkin)
1½ c. evaporated milk or rich cream
¼ c. brown sugar
½ c. white sugar
½ tsp. salt
1½ tsp. cinnamon
¾ tsp. ginger
½ tsp. nutmeg or allspice (allspice is so great here, it adds a slight bit of peppery after taste that is yum)
¼ tsp. cloves
2 eggs, slightly beaten
Mix all the ingredients and pour into pie shells. Bake 15 minutes at 425º, then reduce heat to 350º and bake about 45 min. longer or until an inserted knife comes out clean. Serve with whipping cream.
I served this at our Thanksgiving dinner and it was met with moans!
Please tell me about your favorite pumpkin recipes or uses in the comments below!
It’s all about sharing the love!
If you are interested in getting healthy and/or learning how to live a happier, more mindful life please click here!
-Sue
Empowering you to create your vibrant life!
Have you tried my Five Day Low-Glycemic Meal Plan? It’s healthy and includes some great recipes! www.exuberantlives.com
Cool Sue!!! Look at you, with printable, embedded recipes! Can’t believe your pumpkin crop, that is truly amazing. The pumpkins you gave us decorated the front steps for about a month, and the postman only tripped over them once!
This an amazing resource, Sue! Thank you so much!
Love your Info -THANX Barb