Buy local pumpkins, carve and zero waste

I hate food waste but love a challenge so here are my recipes to use up ALL the contents of your pumpkin this Halloween after you carve your creation! The flesh, seeds and stringy guts! This is one of the Workplace Cookery Demos I am presenting virtually this October. While the smaller pumpkins tend to be sweeter and better for making pumpkin pie, soup etc the larger Jack-o- lantern style pumpkins can be eaten also!,

Where to buy your pumpkins?  Most large supermarkets are selling Irish grown pumpkins, however with the cost so low, I wonder how much the farmer gets for each pumpkin.?  I prefer to buy mine from local farmers markets  or farm shops where it cuts out the middle man and the money goes straight to the farmer, Near me I have McNally Farm, Airfield, Kilruddery market, or places that cn deliver nationwide like Green earth organics, Fallon and Byrne, Or you can check out various pumpkin patches around the country and choose you own!

Have three containers ready;

one for the flesh,

one with water which will be for the seeds and

one for the stringy guts!

As you pull out the guts and seeds, try to separate them but if seeds are stuck to the stringy flesh then add it to the bowl with water as this will help separate them.

I find moving a large metal spoon inside the pumpkin to scrape off the flesh works best. It should be easy to lift out the seeds from the top of the bowl with water and place on a baking tray, then you can gently squeeze out the stringy guts and add them to the bowl ready to make the pumpkin bread.

Pumpkin Bread Recipe

This takes 10 mins to prepare and 1 hour to cook. It makes two loaves. This is more of a cake really than a bread, think banana bread! It is delicious warm, with butter and a cup of tea! It freezes well too, best to slice first.

makes two loaves - 24 slices

Ingredients
300g coarse wholemeal flour
125g plain white flour
375g sugar or substitute like stevia erylite
2tsp cinnamon
1 nutmeg, grated
2 tsp bread soda
1 tsp salt
4 eggs, beaten
175g butter, melted
250g of stringy pumpkin guts
125g chopped pecans or walnuts (optional)

Method

1. Heat the oven to 180°C, line two loaf tins (approx. 22 x 12cm)with parchment paper.
2. Put the butter in one of the tins in the oven to melt.
3. Using a pair of scissors, gut through the pumpkin guts so that they are in small pieces to melt into the loaf.
4. Mix together the flour, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, soda and salt in a large bowl.
5. Add the eggs, butter and pumpkin, stir until a smooth batter.
6. If it appears a little dry you can add 50- 100mls water to moisten it, this really depends on the moisture content of your pumpkin.
7. If using nuts, stir through now.
8. Pour the mixture into the tins and bake for 1 hour. Check to see if it is cooked by inserting a skewer, if it comes out clean then the bread is cooked, if not, pop it back in for 5 mins and repeat.
9. Cool for 10 mins in the tin then allow to cool on a wire tray.

Pumpkin Soup Recipe

This is a tasty soup to use up the flesh part of the pumpkin

Ingredients:
2 onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
Pumpkin flesh from med pumpkin (approx 2kg)
600ml Vegetable stock
400ml tin coconut milk (optional)
Pepper and salt

Method

1. Cut and scrape out the pumpkin flesh once you have carved the pumpkin, chop into pieces approx. 3cm square, if possible!
2. Saute off the onion and garlic, in a little oil or use my saute in water method.
3. Add in the stock, coconut milk and pumpkin pieces, season with pepper and salt and simmer for 10-15 mins until pumpkin is cooked.
4. Blend soup with a hand held blender, taste and adjust seasoning.
5. Serve in bowls, topped with some cream and pumpkin seeds.

Pumpkin Seed recipe

Ingredients:
Pumpkin seeds from the inside of you pumpkin
1 -2 tsp Bragg Liquid Aminos (or nice soy sauce/tamari)

Method:

1. Heat the oven to 180 ºC
2. Remove the seeds from the water and shake off any excess water in a sieve or strainer.
3. Place on a dry metal tray and place in the oven for 5 mins, stir and return for another 3-5 mins, the seeds are just starting to colour but if we toast them too much the natural oils in the seeds will begin to break down.
4. Once they are dried out and slightly crunchy they are ready, add your flavouring and enjoy - store in a jar for a few days.