After Halloween, we typically have maybe a few pumpkins still laying around and I want to make a clarification on a couple of things. Sometimes people think that your jack-o-lantern pumpkins are the very same as what we would use for making pies.
Actually, there are two different kinds of pumpkins. The pumpkin that is used as jack-o-lantern pumpkin is not as sweet and has a more coarse texture to it. The pie pumpkins that are the smaller sweet pumpkins are the ones that are used for pie making.
That doesn’t mean that your jack-o-lantern pumpkin can’t be used for all kinds of great things. You can actually bake casseroles inside them, you can put soups inside them or you can make soups with them. Definitely, your sweeter pumpkin is good for things like your pies. But what about cookies, too? Or sweet breads like a traditional pumpkin bread.
The really nice things about pumpkins are they can be steamed, they can be baked, they can be boiled, microwaved even. Because they have so much versatility you can prepare them in cubes or chunks, they can be cooled and pureed. It freezes great but it freezes better cooked.
And so, don’t forget the value of the pumpkin being built into a meal plan. All great uses of the pumpkin.
I’m Teresa Hunsaker with Utah State University Extension in Weber County.
