Tag Archives: pumpkin

Pumpkin Smoothies

18 Sep

 

I think my favorite thing about fall is getting fresh pumpkins to bake with.  Our favorites are pumpkin pie, pumpkin gingerbread muffins, and pumpkin pancakes.  So, when fellow Bountiful Baskets participant posted a recipe for Pumpkin Smoothies, I looked it over, realized I had all the ingredients, and decided we needed to give it a try.

The recipe is from a picture that Oasis Advanced Wellness posted on their Facebook page about the Health Benefits of Pumpkin.

Healthy Pumpkin Smoothie

What you need:

1 frozen banana
1 cup vanilla almond milk
1 cup pumpkin, grated (I use pureed pumpkin)
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp nutmeg
Freshly ground pumpkin seeds (optional)
Agave nectar, stevia, or raw honey to taste
Ice cubes, to help thicken, if needed

How to make it:

Combine all ingredients in a blender until creamy.

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Pumpkin Pancakes

10 Jan

 

When Cyndy at Daily Cynema posted a recipe for Pumpkin Pancakes, I knew I had to try them.  One of the neighboring towns to my hometown has a Libby pumpkin processing plant, so they have a Pumpkin Festival every year.  They offer many pumpkin treats, including pumpkin pancakes, and since I’ve only been able to have their pumpkin pancakes twice in my life (too early and too much of a line to go), I wanted to see if I could make some of my own.  Unfortunately, the first time I attempted to make these was a failure.  The outsides cooked, but the insides were still gooey.  I had used a whole can of pumpkin, and the texture inside may have just been because of the texture of pumpkin, but it was hard to tell if it was that or if they were undercooked.  This time, I opted for about half a can of pumpkin, or 3/4 cup.  They turned out perfectly this time.  You do have to watch how you cook them, I found for me, low heat and a longer cook time was what I needed to get them to cook fully without overbrowning the outsides.  With some maple syrup, these make a wonderful breakfast!

Pumpkin Pancakes

What you need:

2 cups dry pancake mix (like Bisquick)
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1-1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1/4 teaspoon all spice
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1-1/2 cups milk
3/4 cup pumpkin puree
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon vegetable oil

How to make it:

Mix together the dry ingredients in one bowl, then mix together the wet ingredients in a separate bowl.  Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until well combined.  Heat an electric griddle or a griddle on the stove to just under medium heat, grease with oil or butter. Pour batter onto griddle to the size you want your pancakes.  When pancakes start to bubble and get dry on the sides, flip to brown the other side.  Cook until golden brown on both sides.

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Pumpkin Gingerbread Muffins

16 Nov

I am FINALLY getting around to using the pumpkin I prepared a few weeks ago.  It’s been sitting in my freezer patiently.  I took some out of the freezer earlier this week, so today was the day to use it.  And, I decided to make Pumpkin Gingerbread muffins with it.  This is a recipe that I got from my friend, Cyndy at Daily Cynema.  She has a lot of other great recipes too, in fact, I’m hoping to try out her pumpkin pancake recipe in the near future.

Here is the link to her recipe: Pumpkin Gingerbread Muffins.  I follow it exactly, except that instead of 1 can of pumpkin, I used 1 3/4 cups of fresh pumpkin.  Such a great holiday treat!

 

Almost forgot, this made 2 dozen yummy muffins.

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3 Ways to Cook Pumpkins

26 Oct

Apparently, there may be a shortage of canned pumpkin this year.  I’m not too worried, because luckily there is a local farm here, Dad’s Farm, that grows pumpkins.  They also have a petting zoo, a tractor ride, a hay ride, and other produce available.  We took the girls a couple weeks ago, and we got pumpkins for jack-o-lanterns and for baking.  We paid $20 for all of these pumpkins.

The 6 smaller ones are the ones for baking.  The smaller pumpkins tend to be sweeter, so that’s why they are good for baking.   I believe they are around $.60/lb at this farm, so the 2 larger pumpkins were about 25 pounds combined, the 6 smaller were about 8 pounds.  That works out to $4.80 for the 6 small pumpkins, which after cooking I got 7 cups of pumpkin for baking.  A 15 oz can of Libby’s pumpkin is 1 3/4 cups, so I have 4 cans worth of fresh pumpkin.  This works out to $1.20 for the equivalent of a can.  I checked the price at Fry’s Food Stores today, and 15 oz cans of pumpkin are $2.29, or $1.99 after you use your VIP card.   Preparing the pumpkins for baking is time consuming, so paying a little more for a can is probably worth the time savings, but if you can’t find canned pumpkin or like to do things like this (like I do) to get fresh ingredients, it’s worth a try to prepare your own.

I took the 6 pumpkins I had and prepared them 3 different ways, in the oven, in the steamer, and in the slow cooker.’

Pumpkin Puree for Baking

First thing, no matter your method, you need to wash and dry the outside of the pumpkins.  Then, cut each pumpkin in half and scoop out the seeds and innards.  If you want, set the seeds aside for roasting.

Method #1: In the oven

Preheat your oven to 350 F.  Line a baking sheet with foil and place pumpkins cut side down. Pierce the skin with a fork.  Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until skin has softened and easily pierces with a fork.  Flip pumpkins over and allow to cool.

Method #2: In the steamer

Fill the bottom of the steamer to the Lo water line.  Place pumpkins in the steamer, cutting up more if necessary to get them to fit. Cook in steamer for 30 minutes, or until soft.  Remove from steamer and allow to cool.

Method #3: In the slow cooker

Arrange pumpkins in slow cooker, cutting up more if necessary to get them to fit.  Add 1 cup of water to the bottom of the slow cooker.  Cover, and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or high for 3-4 hours.  Remove from slow cooker and allow to cool.

Once pumpkins have cooled, scoop the flesh from the skin using a spoon into a food processor or blender.

Puree the pumpkin until smooth.  If there seems to be a lot of water in the puree, line a colander with paper towels and pour the pumpkin puree onto the paper towel.  Let sit to allow some of the water top drip out of the pumpkin.

Measure out 1 3/4 cups of the puree and put into a sandwich sized zipper bag, or whatever type of container you desire for storage.  Label, and store in fridge or freezer until you are ready to bake with it.

Now I need to get together all my pumpkin recipes to decide what to make.  I’m thinking Pumpkin Gingerbread Muffins, Pumpkin Pancakes, and Pumpkin Pie so far.  Yum!

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