Blog Archives

Food 101: Pumpkin Roasting

In an ideal world, we would have had this post up before Thanksgiving and pumpkin pie making time.  But alas, time got away from us, and that did not happen.  But, perhaps it’s even better timing now, as people transition from fall decorations to Christmas/winter ones.  As we covered in pumpkin seed post, pumpkins are cool because they’re both festive seasonal decorations, and food.  So instead of just throwing those pumpkins you bought for decoration out, roast them!  You can roast them in slices and eat like you would other winter squash, or you can roast them for pumpkin puree.  This is probably the most versatile option, since there are many things you can use pumpkin puree for.   You can use any size pumpkin you have on hand, but these guidelines are written for sugar pumpkins, which are the smaller ones.  If you’re using big pumpkins, like the kind for jack o’lanterns, roasting times may vary.

This is a sugar pumpkin

This is a sugar pumpkin

Both roasting processes begin with cutting your pumpkin in half and scooping out the guts.  And also preheating your oven to 375 degrees (Fahrenheit).

DSCF4576

The beginning

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Thanksgiving Leftovers Week: Savory Pumpkin Spread

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(?)

 

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The Snack Report: Pumpkin Spice Oreos

Here we are again, another Oreos review. And yet, despite 4 previous Oreo reviews, I still had to pay for these with my own money.  When are you going to throw us a bone Nabisco (or more specifically, some free cookies)?  But enough of my grumbling.

It’s kind of funny because about a month ago we saw the regular Halloween Oreos that are just the regular flavor but with orange colored cream.  I commented on how it’s lame that for Halloween they just have orange colored cream and not pumpkin flavored cream, and we agreed that would be a tasty idea.  Well, about a week later in a different grocery store I stumbled upon the pumpkin spice Oreos.  I was very excited.  But did they live up to expectations?

Well lookie what I found

Well lookie what I found

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Cheat Code: Roasting Jack O’lantern Pumpkin Seeds

It’s that time of year again. It’s almost Halloween, which means it’s time for witches, ghosts, goblins, and jack o’lanterns!  Pumpkins and jack o’lanterns are some of the best Halloween decorations because they look nice and fun, but are also food!  That’s right, all that gloop you pull out of your pumpkin to carve it has a bonus snack hidden within.  Pumpkin seeds!  Pumpkin seeds are a good snack because they’re a good source of protein, fiber, vitamin E and vitamin B.  They also contain the good fats that can help lower cholesterol.  So you could definitely think twice before just throwing all those seeds out.  But before eating them you need to roast them.

Augh! I didn't know you were gonna kill it!

Augh! I didn’t know you were gonna kill it!

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Smoothie Sunday: Pumpkin Peach Smoothie

Well, this is the last Sunday in September, which means by this time next week it will be October. Which also means it’s the start of pumpkin season!  Let this smoothie help you transition into fall.  I used the pumpkin similar to how I used the avocado in the avocado mango smoothie a couple of weeks ago.  And like that smoothie it came out pretty thick.  But it’s definitely yummy, and a nice intro into fall breakfasts.

What you'll need

What you’ll need

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