Pumpkin advice - part two

Status
Not open for further replies.

Somerset

Puritan Board Junior
Some time ago I asked for advice on growing pumpkins, which was kindly provided. We harvested them yesterday - 7 with a total weight of 98lbs. In my pre - Christian days these would have been sold for halloween - happily this is no longer an option.

We like them roasted and have a nice looking recipe for a pumpkin cake. We are also going to have a go at pumpkin pie. Does anyone have any good recipes?

They will keep in our cellar for a few months but I am thinking of offering pieces to some of our customers from the USA. How does one cut a pumpkin in half neatly: cheese wire? bow saw? Once cut, would they be best put in the fridge wrapped in clingfilm (thin plastic that sticks to itself - and pretty well anything it shouldn't stick to. Sue thinks you may use a different name).

Next year I think we can get the weight up a fair bit. Sue asks why I would want to have even more pumpkin - I suppose it is the challenge of bigger, further, better.
 
Clingfilm...yeah that's a new one. I would have said plastic wrap or Glad wrap (with a Texas accent, of course). I know it's anti-American, but I pass on the pumpkin and go for the pecan pie.
 
How does one cut a pumpkin in half neatly: cheese wire? bow saw?

A long, sharp pointed knife that's probably illegal in England. A sharp machete might work, but your aim would have to be good.

You do know what's inside a pumpkin, don't you?
 
The bigger the pumpkin the less tasty, generally. Though I don't really mind, pie is pie! I actually most like to use pumpkin as hidden nutrition in chilli and the suchlike. You could sell pumpkin puree, your American customers might appreciate that!
 
Hi Ken. My wife makes pumpkin scones, really nice. Just the normal scone recipe with a cup or two of mashed up pumpkin added. One cup for a dozen I think. Sometimes she will add some diced up red and green capsicum too. So there is about four or five diced up bits in each one. Roughly. Eeerrr, Halloween has been creeping up on us over here in Australia in the past several years. We were immune to it but it is slowly gaining a foothold. Nothing like other countries thankfully.
 
The thrill of growing a big pumpkin doesn't always fit the goal of getting a tasty pumpkin. Larger varieties are great for decorative purposes and for carving faces (which, it seems, you don't do). Smaller varieties are generally better for pies and cakes. You can still eat the big ones if you want to, but they tend to be less sweet and the meaty, edible part will be thinner and stringier.
 
Jack is right - the small varieties known as "sugar pumpkins" are what you want for eating purposes. They generally run at about three pounds in size.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top