Blogtoberfest, day 29 - How to Cook A Pumpkin

“One of the very nicest things about life is the way we must regularly stop whatever it is we are doing and devote our attention to eating.”
- Luciano Pavarotti


I grew up on pumpkin pies that were always made from fresh pumpkins vs canned pumpkins.  Maybe it had something to do with my parents living during the depression or that was just the way my grandmother always made it and therefore my mother did the same.  Whatever the reason, I'm so glad to have learned how to do this myself.  One year, I made a canned pumpkin, thinking maybe it would be just as good, but it wasn't and I went back to cooking my own pumpkins for the best pumpkin pies ever...

I remember how my mother did it and that's how I did, until I discovered easier and quicker ways.  Seriously, it really doesn't take that much time and it's so worth the effort.

For years I always cooked our pumpkins that we had carved for Halloween.  But somewhere along the way I heard about pie pumpkins.  They're much smaller in size and sweeter.  I'm going to share some photos and links, because I cooked up quite a few pie pumpkins last year and I still have enough pumpkin in our freezer for about 4-5 pies...

The first thing you want to do is to wash the outside of the pumpkin and then cut it in half...

Scoop the seeds out using either a heavy duty spoon or an ice cream scoop...

There's actually a couple of different ways to cook the pumpkin.  I usually put it into a glass container with some water, cover and microwave until it can easily be pierced with a fork...

Once it's cooked, the hard peeling will slice off very easily from the rest of the pumpkin.  I usually put the hot pumpkin in a dry sink and let it cool so it can be peeled.  After peeling, put the pumpkin in a large bowl and mash with a potato masher.  I usually use a strainer to help drain any excess water.  Then I measure out about 1 1/2-2 cups per freezer container, label and put in the freezer until ready to make your pie or soup.

Other ways to cook is to cut into manageable pieces and cook on top of the stove in water or you can cook in a 350 degree oven until it's tender, just like you would do for squash.   To get additional information about baking your own pumpkin, click here.

Tomorrow I'll share the best pumpkin pie recipe.  If you try making it with real pumpkin, I promise you'll never want to have a canned pumpkin pie ever again.