Fresh Roasted Pumpkins Food

ROASTED PUMPKIN

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Cut pumpkin in half; scrape out seeds.
• Drizzle pumpkin with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. (Omit pepper if using in sweet dishes.)
• Place cut side down on a baking sheet. Roast until very soft, about 35 to 45 minutes.

SPICY ROAST PUMPKIN

Steps:

• Pre-heat oven to 200 C or 400°F.
• Quarter and then carefully peel and seed the pumpkin.
• Cut into chunky 2" cubes.
• Place pumpkin into a large & sturdy roasting tray.
• Add the olive oil, salt, pepper & cumin - mix well, making sure that all the pumpkin pieces are coated in olive oil.
• Bake in the oven for about 30 to 45 minutes or until the pumpkin is soft & also tinged brown at the edges.
• Serve with a main meal as the vegetable dish OR freeze for future savoury pumpkin recipes. I also make soup from this - as well as pasta dishes too - recipes to be posted for those!

ROASTED PUMPKIN SOUP

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Place the pumpkin cut side up on a parchment lined baking sheet. Season with 1/2 teaspoon of the salt and 1/4 teaspoon of the pepper. Invert to the cut side down, and drizzle with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Place in the oven and roast until the skin is golden brown and the pumpkin is tender, 50 to 60 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Once cool enough to handle, use a spoon to scoop the pumpkin flesh from its skin and set pumpkin aside until ready to use. Discard the skin.
• Set a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil and, when hot, add the cinnamon and allspice and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Add the onions, carrots, celery, ginger and garlic to the pan and saute, stirring occasionally, until lightly caramelized, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the chicken stock and reserved pumpkin to the pan and bring the stock to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook the soup for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the vegetables are soft.
• Remove the soup from the heat and process with an immersion blender (*or in batches in a blender) until smooth. Season with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and pinch of pepper. Add the cream to the soup and stir to combine.
• To serve, place 1 cup of the soup in each of 6 warmed soup bowls. Drizzle 2 teaspoons of the pumpkin seed oil in the bowl and garnish with a 2 or 3 fried sage leaves.

ROASTED PUMPKIN SEEDS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
• While it's OK to leave some strings and pulp on your seeds (it adds flavor) clean off any major chunks.
• Toss pumpkin seeds in a bowl with the melted butter or oil and seasonings of your choice.
• Spread pumpkin seeds in a single layer on baking sheet.
• Bake for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until golden brown.

FRESH ROASTED PUMPKINS

Steps:

• Select any of the smaller "pie" varieties of pumpkin (Sugar Pumpkin, Baby Bear, etc) then cut the pumpkin in half lengthwise, remove all the seeds and stringy fibers, and then place cut-side down on a greased baking sheet.
• Bake at 350°F (177°C) for approximately 45 minutes to 1 1/2 hours (depending on size) or until easily pierced with a knife. Let cool, then scoop out the pulp and puree in a food processor until smooth.
• You do need to extract all the liquid, so strain the pumpkin through a cheesecloth lined strainer and then cool the puree before using. You can freeze any extra for future pies.