There are those who really love the flavor of fresh-baked pumpkins and do not mind taking the time to clean and bake them. They also know that the typical pumpkin sold for use as a Jack-o-Lantern is not the pumpkin to use since these are usually grown solely for size and the pumpkin lover will either grow or seek out those lovely pie or sugar pumpkins which are cultivated solely for flavor.
I would also like to point out here that one does not need a very large pumpkin as most recipes call for two cups of prepared pumpkin or less.
Making your own pureed pumpkin is really basically simple. Just obtain a one pound pumpkin that you have either grown in your organic garden or purchased from a reliable source that grows pie or sugar pumpkins and split it in half.
Take a spoon and remove the fibrous, stringy interior and the seeds. Save the seeds for making other things such as spiced pumpkin seeds.
I suggest putting a piece of parchment paper on a cookie sheet as opposed to just placing your pumpkin on the cookie sheet since it makes for easier cleaning and handling down the road. Next place your pumpkin halves split side down and cover with aluminum foil. Place in a pre-heated oven at 350F and bake for 40 to 60 minutes or until the flesh is tender. When you have reached that stage remove it from the oven and place on a rack to cool until it is not too hot to touch.
Now you will be able to easily separate the skin from the pulp with a small sharp knife. Throw your pumpkin skin onto your compost heap and put the pulp in your blender or food processor with about cup of water and blend until smooth. For those of you who have neither appliance you can just mash them up until they are at a consistency to put through a food mill or food grinder.
You can now put the pureed pumpkin in your refrigerator where it will keep for two days. A good ratio to remember is that every pound of fresh uncut pumpkin will yield approximately cup of puree.
This may seem like a lot of work, but for those really true pumpkin eaters it is not!
"Tread the Earth Lightly" and in the meantime May your day be filled with Peace, Light and Love,
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