Pumpkin

[oz diva]

Here in Australia the most common way to treat pumpkin is as a savoury vegetable. We roast it, we turn it into soup and occasionally we make it into pumpkin scones.

What do you do with pumpkin?

[hyzenthlay]

Carve it at Halloween, and that's about it 

[Sharnita]

I am not a huge fan of pumpkin but I have seen it in soup and such - also the ever famous pie.  I have seen pumpkin cookies and bread. People sometimes eat pumpkin seeds...

[gramma dishes]

We carve the pumpkin into a Halloween decoration and throw all the "meat" down the garbage disposal.  But we certainly save and roast those wonderful seeds!  Ah yes ... yum, yum.

My pumpkin for pie baking comes from a can labeled Libby's.

[Pippen]

My cousins French husband was most bemused when my mother served roast pumpkin as they use it as animal feed there.

[PastryGoddess]

Soup! It's great roasted and pureed. I also will mix it with butternut and acorn squash for soup as well

Pumpkin bread is yummy.  I'm from MD, but didn't grow up with pumpkin pie.  My family is from the south, so we did sweet potato pie.

[Pippen]

oh and it is great in curry with coconut cream or ricotta and spinach ravioli. An American girl I had working for me said they make a pie with it but you have to use it out of a tin. You can't use actual whole pumpkin or it is just not the same. I had a bit of a brain bend at pumpkin in a tin. It think if anyone saw it on the shelves here they would be thinking 'I'm not paying $3 for .01c worth of pumpkin."

[Shopaholic]

In Israel, I have never seen a whole pumpkin but I can always fine it cut up and wrapped in clingfilm for purchase at the supermarket.
I use it for soups mostly. It's great in the soup that goes with couscous.

[NyaChan]

soup, pie, cake, muffins, pancakes...yum!

[Daffydilly]

It depends on the type of pumpkin. The US is really big on carved jack o lanterns for Halloween. So the most common types are large, with lots of seeds and little flavor. You can buy smaller pie pumpkins for actual cooking. Baked pumpkin seeds are delicious, pumpkin pie loaded with spices is popular and pumpkin bread is delicious.

Personally, I love trying new pumpkin recipes without heavy spices. It's so mellow and delicious, that I'd adore using new recipes for it. Does anyone have one to post in the recipes section?

[CakeEater]

Kent pumpins are me favourite. They look like this:

http://sustainableecho.com/how-to-roast-pumpkin-seeds/

Pumpkin is really expensive here at the moment. I just paid $20 for a whole one this week. Roasted with garlic is my favourite, but my newest use is cutting it up to put in casseroles - makes the sauce quite thick.

[JennJenn68]

A couple of summers ago, I was at a restaurant in a little beach town in Southern Ontario.  They provided "family-style" service of various appetizers and salads to go with whatever main course one ordered.  It was the only time I have ever seen or tried pickled pumpkin.  It was heavenly! 

They gave out the recipes for all of their salads and appetizers.  I wish I knew where I'd put the flippin' recipe, or I'd share it here.  I guess I'll just have to go back there again--I hope that it's still there!

[Thipu1]

Soup, pie, custard.  It can also be served roasted as a vegetable.

However, pumpkins used for these dishes aren't the usual Halloween variety.  The pumpkin preferred for cooking is a flatter and paler type often known as a 'cheese pumpkin' around here.

[Outdoor Girl]

Jack O'Lantern pumpkins:  Fairly large, insides cleaned out, seeds saved for roasting and a face carved into it for Hallowe'en.  My mother always cut it up and roasted it, then froze it for pumpkin pies.  She'd spoon off any liquid on the top as it thawed and it made really good pie.

Pie (or sugar) pumpkins:  Much smaller, meatier flesh.  I roast these seeds, too.  The flavour is a little different from JOL but still good.  I use this flesh for pie, muffins, cakes, loaf cakes, soup.

Has anybody ever read the ingredients on plum sauce?  The first listed ingredient is pumpkin!

[SiotehCat]

I carve them and roast the seeds. I hate the taste of pumpkin pie, but The Olive Garden has a pumpkin cheesecake that I think is alright.

I haven't eaten pumpkin any other way.