Halloween is one of my favorite holidays. I love the decorations! I love going to the pumpkin patch and picking pumpkins. I love making all things pumpkin as well!
Old Town Bluffton, South Carolina has an awesome Farmer’s Market. They usually have them on Thursday afternoons/evenings. They close off part of Calhoun St, and all of the vendors come out and bring their fruits and veggies. The other great thing about it, there are other vendors with specialty items like fresh pasta, homemade cheeses, spices, and even baked goods. Usually there is a band playing live music and there’s always something good to grab to eat while you’re there. Just another reason why I love it here!
The great thing about the Farmer’s Market in October is fresh sugar pumpkins! These are so perfect for roasting down to make pumpkin puree for pies, breads, coffees, cookies, and anything else you can think of to make pumpkin flavored!
Here’s what I used:
1 sugar pumpkin
Olive oil
salt
This little guy is about a 2 and ¾ lb sugar pumpkin. Isn’t it cute?Wash the pumpkin and dry it off. Cut around the stem and remove the top (you want to cut just large enough so your hand will fit in. Discard the top.Scoop out the seeds and stringy stuff.Cut the pumpkin in half. Be careful not to cut yourself; the pumpkin can be wobbly.Drizzle the inside with 1 tsp olive oil per half of pumpkin, and season with salt.Place the pumpkin halves on a baking sheet lined with foil, flesh side down.Roast the pumpkin on 325 degrees Fahrenheit for about 45 minutes. The time will vary some (less or more) depending on the size of your pumpkin.The pumpkin is done when you can easily insert a fork into the pumpkin (the side with the skin still on).
Allow the pumpkin to cool completely.
Scoop out the roasted flesh (Doesn’t that sound creepy? Good thing this is a Halloween posting…) with a spoon to remove from the skin. Place the scooped out pumpkin into a bowl. Discard the skin.For this part, I used an emersion blender, but you can use a food processor or blender. Puree the pumpkin until smooth. I got about 2 cups of pureed pumpkin out of this.My recipe for Glazed Pumpkin Bread only calls for one cup, so that‘s all I‘m using right now. I’ll freeze the other 1 cup. If you are not using all of your pumpkin puree right away, you can put it in a freezer bag and freeze it until ready to use. Allow to thaw in the fridge before using. If you have not used your pumpkin within 3 months, throw it out. I left some in my freezer for a year one time. I thawed it, then tried tasting a little bit…NASTY! Don’t let it stay in there that long!
What are you going to make with your pumpkin puree?
Melissa is a self-taught, home cook with Midwest and Southern style influences. Melissa grew up in the Midwest , and currently lives in South Carolina with her husband, Jon and four dogs. She's been cooking and creating recipes almost her whole life. Melissa enjoys taking photographs of food and dishes she creates.
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