Pumpkins are readily available right now and very inexpensive. I promise this isn't as scary or difficult as it might sound! You want to choose a pumpkin a smaller pumpkin as the larger jack-o-lantern pumpkins can be a little off in texture.
The first step, and the nastiest in my opinion, is to cut the pumpkin in half and scoop out all the guts. I tried to enlist Roman's help on this one but he wasn't having it. If you can't cut the pumpkin in half you can just chop it into a few pieces, it's all going to be blended anyway. Place your pumpkin pieces skin side down on a parchment lined baking sheet, and pop them into a 375° oven for 45 minutes.
Let the pumpkin cool slightly before cutting the flesh away from the skin. Or ignore this step and burn your hand like I did, it's really a matter of personal choice. I like to live on the wild side. Toss the pumpkin into a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. You may have to add a little water to get it to blend well. Of course Roman was more than happy to help with this part.
Now that you have your pumpkin puree you can do one of three things with it;1. Use it immediately, 2. Transfer the puree to a freezer bag and freeze it for later use, or 3. transfer it to an airtight container to use in the next few days. I decided to use some mason and jam jars to hold my puree until I can get around to making some muffins with it. I didn't have any lids kicking around so I used a layer of tin foil under the collar to seal it up.
See, that was pretty painless! Now you have some delicious, homemade puree to use in your Thanksgiving pies, tarts, cheesecakes, cupcakes, muffins, brownies, cookies.....Well, look at the time! Time for me to hit the kitchen and make some muffins!
I am surprised Roman didn't want to help with the guts!
ReplyDeleteI'm also surprised!!
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