Our last entry in Thanksgiving Leftovers Week is a quick, useful, little recipe which creates an interesting condiment that’s surprisingly good. If you’ve gone through the trouble of roasting your own pumpkins or just used canned puree, and have some leftover, your first reaction is to panic and OH GOD WHAT DO I DO WITH THIS SMALL AMOUNT OF PUMPKIN?! Pumpkin puree is an interesting ingredient in that while it’s yummy and tastes great in pumpkin pies, most people don’t know what the hell to do with it outside of that. That’s where this recipe comes in handy. Similar to guacamole, this savory pumpkin spread is great for dipping or as a sauce on and in other dishes. Try it out, you won’t be disappointed.

Leftovers Utilized: Pumpkin puree, spices(?)

Savory Pumpkin Spread

• 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp cinnamon
• 2 tsp chilli powder
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper (or just regular pepper if you don’t have a grinder)
• 1/4 tsp sugar (optional)

Simply combine all the ingredients in a small bowl and mix thoroughly. That’s all there is to it.

As mentioned, this will produce a type of spread that’s similar to guacamole in that it’s not meaty, but still savory. The cinnamon pairs well with the pumpkin’s natural flavor, without becoming too much like pumpkin pie filling. You can omit the sugar if you’d like, as doing so will produce a slightly saltier pumpkin spread, but that’s entirely up to your own taste. What do you use it on? Well I’m glad you, or at least I assume, you asked. If you didn’t, well then listen anyway, it’ll be useful.

• Use as a sandwich spread to instantly transform any sandwich into Fall-style
• Substitute as a dip for any chips, in place of guacamole to give those chips some Fall-style flavor
• Serve on top of meats like pork or chicken after roasting them in the oven and make a nice Fall-style roast
• Combine into other sauces or marinades to give them that Fall-style zing
• Casseroles or macaroni and cheese need something else, like some kinda Autumnal flare? Bam. Savory pumpkin spread. Mac n cheese. Fall-style.
• And last but not least, our personal favorite, utilize to the extreme when making burritos

Joke’s over. Go home.