Nothing too exciting but I finally made my own fresh pumpkin puree so this house will be canned pumpkin free this year. I can tell you from tasting it definitely makes a difference and it's so simple to do.
All you have to do to get your own fresh pumpkin puree
-Cut a sugar pumpkin (aka pie pumpkin) in half
-Scrape out the seeds and most of the pulp with a spoon
-Place them open side down in 1/4 water in a glass baking dish or roasting pan (I did both since I had 3 pumpkins)
-Bake at 350 for 45-60minutes (check with fork to see when you can easily pierce)
-Then Scoop out the Meat (pretty much everything but the peel) and blend or use a food processor to puree
And you can use this in place of canned pumpkin in all your recipes (Also can be frozen or will keep in the fridge 5 days).
If you want a more detailed explanation check out this site. It also has pictures and if you don't want to use the oven you can microwave or cook the pumpkin on the stove top
So I now have an abundance of fresh pumpkin puree in my fridge and freezer and plan to get more before the holidays are past so I can save it for other times of year. I also think in several months it might be good for a baby food option for E. You can also do the above instructions to any squash type vegetable which adds even more food options.
Anyway so I cooked the pumpkins Saturday night and Sunday made Pumpkin Pies with this recipe:
Reading the comments you'll see this yields closer to 1.5 pies so I added 1 egg, used 2 cups of pumpkin, and 2 crusts and ended up with the perfect amount for 2 pies
Also I added a full tsp of cinnamon and only a pinch of cloves and it turned out perfectly taste wise too, it also tasted fresher from the fresh pumpkin. The only difference I noticed was they seemed lighter color than pies using canned pumpkin but it was still nicely orange and looked like pumpkin pie so it's not really an issue.
Monday I made Pumpkin French Toast for Breakfast. This is super easy and a very yummy treat for the holidays when you're not doing a huge meal. I found the initial recipe here
However that recipe seems to be a more subtle version and the pumpkin taste is almost lost (though that could be a good thing if you want to make your kids' breakfast a bit healthier and don't want the pumpkin taste). We did want the pumpkin taste though so I used 3/4 cups of pumpkin puree instead, and added Pumpkin Pie Spices (Ginger, Nutmeg, Allspice) instead of the nutmeg alone, along with the recommend cinnamon. I also added a tsp of Vanilla and a dash of clove and it was amazing! Especially with Whipped cream with a cinnamon sprinkled on it.
Pumpkin French toast mixture as I adjusted it: Beat together the following then dip 8 slices of whole wheat bread in it and cook on Medium heat in a frying pan with butter, Serve with Syrup, Whipped Cream, or Powdered Sugar, or eat them on their own. You can also add white sugar to the mix if you want a sweeter toast without topping.
- 4 eggs
- 3/4 cup pumpkin puree
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice or (Ginger, Nutmeg, Allspice)
- A dash of ground Clove
Anyway continuing on the Pumpkin path I will be making Pumpkin Muffins tonight (would be today but I'm out of baking powder). Here's the recipe. I'll let yall know how it goes.
BTW All the above will make your house smell amazing and definitely put you in the holiday mood :)
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