In the spirit of Halloween, I tried out some pumpkin recipes. I’ve never been particularly tempted by the vegetable as its cousin, the butternut squash, is not one of my favourites. However, every year, so much pumpkin goes to waste from carving so I thought I would try out the recipes. I was pleasantly surprised, particularly by the brownies.
There has been a pumpkin shortage this year, so if you can’t find a pumpkin, any of the recipes will work equally well with butternut squash. My pumpkin was labeled as a carving pumpkin. I had some misgivings about using it for cooking but it seemed to work just as well, despite the Internet claiming otherwise!
Pumpkin wedges
Potato wedges are a student staple. Recently, other flavours such as sweet potato have wedged (pardon the pun) their way into popularity, so why not pumpkin? I was apprehensive about the pumpkin wedges, particularly about the use of the skin in the recipe. However, I was proven wrong as the skin cooked tenderly and the wedges were tasty. They also have a much lower calorie count than potatoes, although I think the quantity of cheese I used might cancel that! There’s no need to use the topping, but the wedges can lack taste without it, so I wouldn’t advise skipping it.
Ingredients
· 1 medium pumpkin
· 50g parmesan, grated ( I used cheddar as well)
· Handful of parsley (I used dried mixed herbs)
· Grated zest of a lemon or lime
· 2 garlic cloves (I used garlic paste)
· Vegetable oil
Method
· Chop pumpkin into 1cm slices, leave skin on but remove the seeds and the pith. The pith is the darker orange coloured part containing the seeds.
· Arrange slices on a baking tray
· Mix together the parmesan, parsley, lemon zest and garlic.
· Rub olive oil on the wedges and then spread the mixture over the pumpkin.
· Roast for 30 minutes at 180C until tender.
Pumpkin Brownies
I’d tried beetroot brownies before, and even my dad, a staunch beetroot opponent, remarked that it was almost impossible to taste the beetroot. The same was true with the pumpkin brownies, although they were gooier than normal brownies. I was almost disappointed they didn’t reflect the orange colour of the pumpkin puree but I think they still qualify as a Halloween treat. They could even be used to give out to trick or treaters.
Although the brownies contain a lot of sugar, so can’t really qualify as a healthy snack, the pumpkin does substitute for butter. This means each brownie comes in at less than 150 calories so they’re definitely not an indulgent snack, and I’m going to keep making them through the year with the dreaded butternut squash.
This recipe requires you to puree some pumpkin flesh. It took me a while to find a method for this, as in America, tinned pumpkin actually exists and is used instead. However, it was really simple and took barely any time.
To make the puree
Cut up pumpkin flesh into chunks. Remove the seeds, pith and skin. Boil the pumpkin for 20 minutes or until tender. Then blend the pumpkin in a blender. I used a blender but I think a smoothie maker would work just as well as the pumpkin is as tender as fruit after being boiled.
Ingredients
· 4 eggs
· 1 ¼ cups of sugar
· 1 cup pumpkin puree
· 2 tablespoons of olive oil
· 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
· 1 cup cocoa powder
· ½ cup of whole wheat flour ( I didn’t have any wholewheat flour so I substituted plain)
· ½ teaspoon of baking powder
· ¼ teaspoon of salt
Method
· Preheat oven to 180C. Grease a baking tray. You can use baking spray, butter or greaseproof paper.
· Mix the eggs and sugar in a bowl. You want the mixture to be smooth.
· Add the remaining ingredients one at a time. Stir them together till everything is mixed in and has a smooth consistency.
· Pour the batter into the tin. Smooth it with a spatula or knife.
· Bake for 30 minutes or until a fork can come out with only a few crumbs stuck to the side.
The brownies are really nice served with vanilla ice-cream or cream. If you’re sticking to the Halloween theme, you could use raspberry sauce and call it blood.
Pumpkin in orange tomato sauce
This hails from Spain and is a real winter warmer with a tempting orange glow. Don’t be put off by the mix of fruit juice with vegetables. It’s delicious. I found it filling and this one really is low in calories! Serve with rice, couscous or pasta. It keeps well in the fridge for a few days and I’ve frozen some of mine to use at a later date.
Ingredients
· Flesh of half a pumpkin (cut into sugarlump sized cubes)
· 1 red onion
· 2 garlic cloves
· Tin of chopped tomatoes
· Pinch of chilli flakes
· Juice of two oranges or 200ml of orange juice
· Squeeze of lemon juice
· Tablespoon of olive oil
Method
· Sweat onion in olive oil until soft.
· Add crushed garlic.
· Add diced pumpkin and stir fry for a couple of minutes until seasoned. Add the chilli flakes, orange juice and the can of tomatoes.
· Cover the pan and cook until the pumpkin is tender. Be sure to stir a few times.
· Season with pepper and add lemon juice before serving.
Pumpkin post massacre!
Sources
All author’s own.