Make Something From Pumpkin Besides Pie

Growing up in Jamaica, I never realized how polarized pumpkins were until I went to culinary school in Toronto. During the fall menu planning meeting, I advocated pumpkin pie, claiming it was “10 times better than apple pie.” I am still haunted by the internal reaction of my classmates to my bold statement. I saw my social status fall, but this was the hill on which I was ready to die. (Plus, my sonorous, accented voice made me wildly popular, so I could have fewer friends anyway.)

“Maybe it’s because they never had a real pumpkin,” I tell myself when I meet the pumpkin hater, trying to understand. I’m not sure why the pumpkin generates so much hate, but I think I know who is to blame. Food and beverage manufacturers set up a pumpkin spice production facility, and since the early 2000s, they have conspired to push pumpkin spice down our throats as if we were being fed geese for Christmas.

The classification of pumpkins as aromatic lattes and pumpkin carvings dishonor the people of Oaxaca, who domesticated the pumpkin over 7,500 years ago. Pumpkin is rich in nutrients and is rich in fiber, beta-carotene, antioxidants, lutein, and potassium. Plus, it contains immunity-enhancing vitamins (A, C and E) that we should all be taking in large amounts, especially right now. Pumpkin is so much more than a latte or even pie. It makes a stellar savory dish, fantastic vegan curry and delicious punch. Here are six recipes, varying in complexity, for unexpected and delicious pumpkin dishes.

Stuffed pumpkin

Ingredients:

• 1 4 pound pumpkin
• 1 cup diced onion
• 1 cup diced bell pepper
• 1 cup diced tomatoes (fresh, not canned)
• 1 cup bread crumbs
• 5 cloves of garlic, finely grated
• 5 strips of fried bacon (with reserved fat)
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• ½ cup grated Parmesan
• ½ teaspoon thyme
• ½ teaspoon oregano
• Salt to taste

Wash the pumpkin and cut off the top (where the stem is attached). Scoop out seeds and fibrous fibers. (Set aside the seeds for planting or baking.) Take a large Dutch oven or saucepan and fill it with enough salted water to completely submerge the pumpkin. Bring the water to a boil, dip the pumpkin in boiling water and cook for 10-15 minutes, until softened with a fork. Remove the pumpkin from the boiling water and let it cool. When the pumpkin is cool enough to use, scoop out the pumpkin pulp, leaving enough so as not to damage the skin, about half an inch.

Fry the bacon and remove from the pan when crispy. Fry the rest of the ingredients in fat, except for the bread crumbs and parmesan. Add the pumpkin pulp you dug out earlier.

Fill the pumpkin with the pumpkin mixture and sprinkle with Parmesan, bread crumbs and crumbled bacon. Bake at 385 ° F for an hour. Cut into wedges and serve.

Vegan Pumpkin Curry

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons coconut oil
• ½ teaspoon of cumin
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon allspice
• 1 small pumpkin, about a pound, peeled and diced
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped / grated
• 3 tablespoons Madras or Caribbean curry powder
• 1 tablespoon grated ginger
• 1 habanero, seedless and finely chopped (use less if you have a heat aversion, but I won’t say this is optional)
• 1 can (about 16 ounces) coconut milk
• 1 cup vegetable broth (packaging works well)
• Salt to taste

Saute the dried spices in coconut oil in a saucepan or Dutch oven over medium heat until the kitchen smells heavenly (this will wake up the spices). Add everything except coconut milk and broth and stir. As soon as the pumpkin and its flavoring ingredients start to stick to the bottom of the pan and brown, add the coconut milk and broth, scraping the bottom with a wooden spoon to loosen the browning. Cover and cook until the pumpkin is tender and the liquid is reduced by a third. Add enough salt to satisfy your taste buds. Serve with quinoa or rice.

Jamaican pumpkin punch

This recipe has been in my family for over 50 years, don’t tell my mom it’s on the internet!

Ingredients:

• 1 small squash (about 1 ½ lb., should be about 3 cups after cooking)
• 5 cups pumpkin water (liquid used to make pumpkin)
• 1 cup canned coconut milk
• 1 glass of condensed milk
• 1 ½ cups of Guinness
• ½ cup Jamaican Extra-Persistent White Rum
• ½ cup brandy
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons mixed spice
• 1 tablespoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon grated nutmeg
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• A pinch of ground carnations
• A pinch of salt

Peel, seed, dice and boil the pumpkin in plenty of boiling water and a pinch of salt. When the pumpkin is very soft, turn off the heat and let it cool. Mix three cups of cooked pumpkin with five cups of boiled water. Pour the puree into a pitcher. Add the rest of the ingredients, stir and enjoy the ice.

Pumpkin spinach pie

Ingredients:

• 4 cups pumpkin, peeled and diced
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped / grated
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• ½ teaspoon thyme
• ½ teaspoon oregano
• Salt to taste
• 2 cups chopped spinach
• 4 eggs, beaten
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 glass of milk
• ½ cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra for sprinkling
• ½ cup crumbled feta
• 2 frozen pie crusts, thawed

Sauté the pumpkin, onion, garlic, dried herbs, salt and pepper in oil until the pumpkin is soft. Add spinach and stir. Remove from heat immediately. Combine eggs, milk, cream, and 1/2 cup each cheese in a bowl and prepare to assemble.

Divide the spinach and pumpkin mixture into the pie crusts, then pour in enough milk mixture so that it comes a quarter inch below the rim of the pie crust. Bake at 400 ° F for 30 minutes, sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese, then reduce heat to 350 ° F and bake until cake is completely frozen (15-20 minutes).

Roasted pumpkin and beetroot with feta, mint and pomegranate

I took this to a party one day and it overshadowed the host’s spread. 11 years have passed and she has not forgotten. You have been warned.

Ingredients:

• 3 cups raw pumpkin, peeled and diced
• ½ teaspoon of cumin
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• 3 cups raw beets, peeled and diced
• 1 teaspoon thyme
• 1 teaspoon orange peel
• ½ cup olive oil, divided
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 12 mint leaves, chopped
• 1 cup shredded feta
• 1 cup pomegranate seeds
• Salt and pepper

Take two baking sheets and place pumpkin, cumin and cinnamon in one, and beets, thyme and orange zest in the other. Pour 1/4 cup olive oil into the pumpkin pan and mix thoroughly with your hands. Wash your hands and repeat the same for the beets. Place the sheets in a 400 ° F preheated oven and bake for 40 minutes. After coming out of the oven, pour maple syrup over the pumpkin. Allow both trays to cool completely.

Combine pumpkin and beets with pomegranate seeds, mint and feta. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Place in a bowl and top with feta. Serve and watch them pass out.

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