Pumpkin Heaven! Pumpkin Heaven!

Pumpkin Heaven ............................................................................................................ 3

Real, Fresh, Pumpkin .................................................................................................... 4
Start With The Right Pumpkin ................................................................................... 4
Real, Fresh, Pumpkin - Two Methods ............................................................................ 4
Method One ................................................................................................................ 4
Method Two................................................................................................................ 5
Measuring Your Fresh Pumpkin..................................................................................... 5

Pumpkin Cream Pie....................................................................................................... 6 Pumpkin Cream Pie .................................................................................................... 6

Pumpkin Crunch............................................................................................................. 7 Pumpkin Crunch ......................................................................................................... 7

Pumpkin Heaven

Thank you for downloading Pumpkin Heaven!

My family has always loved pumpkins. We raised them in the garden, and for a few years my brother grew several acres of them and sold them commercially.

This e-book contains instructions for making your own fresh pumpkin right from the raw vegetable. It also has two of our very favorite pumpkin recipes, Pumpkin Cream Pie and Pumpkin Crunch.

Emma Carpenter

Real, Fresh, Pumpkin

There is no substitute for fresh pumpkin! Making your own, fresh pumpkin straight from the vegetable is a lot easier than some people think. It's a lot like harvesting the flesh from a potato, just on a bigger scale.

Start With The Right Pumpkin

Some pumpkins are grown for ornaments, and some are grown specially for cooking. Cooking pumpkins are generally smaller than ornamental pumpkins, and are often called "pie," "sugar," or "cooking" pumpkins. Their flesh tends to be sweeter, more tender, and less stringy than ornamental pumpkins.

Real, Fresh, Pumpkin - Two Methods

There are a couple of easy ways to harvest the flesh of a pumpkin. We'll describe them both, and you can decide which method is best for you.

Method One
For method one, scrub the outside of your pumpkin clean, using soap if necessary. Rinse the pumpkin completely, pat it dry, then cut it in half. Scrape out all of the seeds and stringy stuff. Put the two halves of the pumpkin hollow side down (skin side up) on a cooking tray. Use a tray that has sides at least an inch tall so that the juices that run out of the pumpkin don't run all over your oven.

Bake the pumpkin at 400 degrees Fahrenheit until the flesh is tender. The cooking time will vary according to the size of the pumpkin, but an average cooking-size pumpkin will need to bake for about an hour. Your pumpkin is done when the flesh is easily pierced by a toothpick or meat fork.

Remove the the tray with the pumpkin halves from the oven and let

everything cool completely. Your pumpkin will be very, very, hot, so be sure to handle it with caution! When it's completely cool scrape the tender flesh out of the skin, and throw away the skin. With a good pumpkin, this will be all you have to do. If your pumpkin meat is a little stringy, you may need to run it through a blender or strainer to eliminate the strings.

Method Two

Another way to cook pumpkin is to boil it. Begin by washing and drying the pumpkin like described above. Next, cut the pumpkin in half. Now cut each half into two pieces so that you have four pieces.

Scrape the seeds and stringy stuff off of each piece, then cut off the skin and throw it away. Cut the pumpkin into smaller chunks and boil it the way you would raw potato pieces. When the pumpkin pieces can be easily pierced with a fork, they're done. Drain off the water, let the pieces cool, and use a mixer to blend the pumpkin into a nice, gooey, pumpkin consistency. Again, with a good pumpkin this will be all you have to do, but if your pumpkin meat is a little stringy you may need to run it through a blender or strainer to
eliminate the strings.

Measuring Your Fresh Pumpkin

Measure and use your fresh pumpkin the same way you would use canned pumpkin. For example, 1 cup of fresh pumpkin is equal to 1 cup of canned pumpkin. We have frozen fresh pumpkin for up to six months without any loss of flavor or texture.

Pumpkin Cream Pie

This is a silky smooth, light, and airy dessert!

You can use fresh pumpkin for this recipe, but we recommend canned for sure-fire, consistent results. If you use fresh, be sure you allow all the excess moisture to drain off before using.

Pumpkin Cream Pie

• 2 cups cold milk
• 2 packages (4 oz. each) instant vanilla pudding mix
• 1 cup pumpkin, canned or fresh, but we recommend canned for this recipe
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• 2 cups Cool Whip
• 1 baked, 9-inch pie shell
• Pecans for garnish, optional

Combine milk, dry pudding mix, pumpkin, pumpkin pie spice, and 1 cup of the Cool Whip. Beat at low speed until blended, about one minute. Pour into baked pie shell and chill. Top with remainder of Cool Whip and pecans.

Pumpkin Crunch

This is a delicious pumpkin dessert that doesn't require a crust like a traditional pumpkin pie. That means it is a little faster to make than a typical pie, and also means there's not as much mess to clean up. Besides that, we just like it better!

Pumpkin Crunch
• 1 can (16 oz. pumpkin) - or - 2 cups fresh pumpkin
• 1 can (12oz.) evaporated milk
• 3 eggs

• 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• 1 package yellow cake mix
• 3/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
• 3/4 cup chopped pecans, optional
• whipped topping for garnish, optional

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease the bottom of a 9" X 13" baking pan. Combine and thoroughly blend the pumpkin, evaporated milk, eggs, sugar, and pumpkin pie spice. Pour into baking pan.

Sprinkle the dry cake mix evenly over the top of the pumpkin mixture. Drizzle the melted butter or margarine over the top of the dry cake mix, and follow with the pecans (optional).

Bake 50 to 60 minutes, until the top is golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Great served with our without whipped topping.