Monday, October 12, 2015

How to Cook a Pumpkin and Make Pumpkin Puree'

Did you know that you can cook a pumpkin? It is very simple, but takes a little bit of time. In light of the pumpkin puree' shortage, I decided to put together a quick post on how to cook one and puree' it.

How to Cook a Pumpkin


First, you will need to cut the pumpkin in half. Scrape out all of the seeds and pull out the strings. Place the pumpkin cut side down into a broiler pan. Fill the pan with about 2 inches of water and place in the oven. 

Cook the pumpkin for about an hour at 350 degrees. Sometimes the pumpkin will sink in the middle, which will also alert you to the fact that it is done. 

How to Make Pumpkin Puree'

Once you allow the pumpkin a long enough time to cool, you will need to scrape out the flesh. Place the flesh in a collindar and let it drain for a bit. These squash have a lot of water. You need to let it drain in order to keep your puree' from being too runny. 

Put the flesh into a food processor to turn it into a puree'.

Run the food processor until the flesh takes on a mushy consistency. Then place the processed pumpkin back in a collindar to drain for about 15 minutes. 

After you allow this to drain, you can use it immediately or place it in freezer bags and put it in storage. If you are going to freeze it for later use, make sure you portion it out to be 1-2 cups of puree'. This will make it easier for you when it is time to thaw it out and use it.