Pumpkin Butchering!
I butchered my first pumpkin of the season today. I beheaded it, dismembered it, skinned it, and scooped out its guts. The seeds are drying, some to be saved for next year, some to be salted & toasted for later today. The flesh is cooking on the stove, bubbling away in a big sturdy pot to become pumpkin butter for my oatmeal and maybe pumpkin soup if there's enough flesh leftover.
ETA: There was only 1 1/2 cups of puree, so it's all going to become pumpkin butter. The seeds are magnificent. I can't wait for the next couple of pumpkins to become ripe. Pumpkin soup, bread, pie, butter, granola, ice cream!
Taken from Tribe.com
Pumpkin Butter:
4 cups pumpkin puree
2 cups white sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon gound cloves
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
This recipe can easily be doubled, and spices can be adjusted to suit taste.
* Place pumpkin, spices, sugar and lemon juice in crockpot. Mix well. Cook on low until thick, smooth, and spreadable. Stirring occasionally. I cook for about 8 hours. Should become a dark rich colour, and should smell and taste like pumpkin pie. Spoon into hot sterilized jars. Seal and process 10 minutes in a boiling water bath.
*Easy Pumpkin Puree~
* Cut pumpkins in half, scrape out all seeds and "stuff". Cut halves in half to make quarters. Place on a cookie sheet skin side down, bake in 300* oven for about 60 minutes or until flesh is easily poked with a fork. Scrape flesh off skin with an ice cream scoop or a table spoon. Flesh should come off relatively easily. Zip flesh in a food processor until smooth, I used a regular electric hand mixer and it did the trick. Freeze pumpkin puree. I freeze mine in ziplock bags, in one cup portions, but I may just fill 1 cup Mason jars next time, this would allow me to skip the measuring step. Next time I do this I will go ahead and add pumpkin pie spice to it as well.
ETA: There was only 1 1/2 cups of puree, so it's all going to become pumpkin butter. The seeds are magnificent. I can't wait for the next couple of pumpkins to become ripe. Pumpkin soup, bread, pie, butter, granola, ice cream!
Taken from Tribe.com
Pumpkin Butter:
4 cups pumpkin puree
2 cups white sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon gound cloves
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
This recipe can easily be doubled, and spices can be adjusted to suit taste.
* Place pumpkin, spices, sugar and lemon juice in crockpot. Mix well. Cook on low until thick, smooth, and spreadable. Stirring occasionally. I cook for about 8 hours. Should become a dark rich colour, and should smell and taste like pumpkin pie. Spoon into hot sterilized jars. Seal and process 10 minutes in a boiling water bath.
*Easy Pumpkin Puree~
* Cut pumpkins in half, scrape out all seeds and "stuff". Cut halves in half to make quarters. Place on a cookie sheet skin side down, bake in 300* oven for about 60 minutes or until flesh is easily poked with a fork. Scrape flesh off skin with an ice cream scoop or a table spoon. Flesh should come off relatively easily. Zip flesh in a food processor until smooth, I used a regular electric hand mixer and it did the trick. Freeze pumpkin puree. I freeze mine in ziplock bags, in one cup portions, but I may just fill 1 cup Mason jars next time, this would allow me to skip the measuring step. Next time I do this I will go ahead and add pumpkin pie spice to it as well.