What's Up With All These Leftover Pumpkins?
So Halloween is over and you've got a boatload of pumpkins left over? What are you going to do with them all. Well for starters you could hold your own pumpkin chuckin' contest in the neighborhood.... or maybe not. Don't tell them the folks at the
Harvest Moon Bed and Breakfast Told you to do so.
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| Lancaster County Pumpkin Recipes |
Or you could become a chef and do some really groovy things with them. Below are a couple of recipes to get you started... Be careful though, only use the ones that have not been carved and ones that are still fresh... Pumpkins are so good!
And if your still into chuckin' pumpkins... I say go for it and send us a picture of your Pumpkin Chuckin' Contraption!
I grabbed this one from Back Road Bistros and Country Farm House Fare by Jane Sigal.... The author of my favorite french cookbook.
Soupe Au Potiron In bourgeois homes throughout France, the evening soup was generally simple
like this one from Brittany,
in which pumpkin, onion, and potato are simmered in water and then pureed until
smooth. But in these affluent kitchens, a dollop of thick cream as in this
recipe or cream butter and egg yolks commonly enriched the soup base. Also the
croutons replaced the bread crusts of peasant cooking.
Brittany
Pumpkin Soup
One 1 ¼ pound wedge pumpkin
or other hard shelled squash
1 tbls unsalted butter
1 Medium onion finely chopped
1 Medium all – purpose
potato, peeled, quartered lengthwise, and thinly slice across
4 cups water
Salt and Pepper to taste
½ cup crème fraiche or heavy
whipping cream
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| Lancaster County Pumpkin Recipe |
Chervil sprigs, snipped
chives or scallion greens for garnish
Croutons
3 slices day old firm white
bread, crusts removed
½ cup vegetable oil
Peel Pumpkin or squash with a
knife and cut it into 1 inch chucks
In a large saucepan, melt the
butter over moderately low heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until
translucent, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the pumpkin chunks, potato, water, and a
little salt to the saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer
gently, uncovered, for 35 minutes.
Meanwhile, if making
croutons, cut the slices of bread into ¼ inch cubes. In a frying pan, heat the
oil until hot but not smoking. Test the oil by dropping in a cube of bread. If
it browns instantly, the oil is too hot; adjust the heat. Add the remaining
bread without crowding the pan and brown the cubes on both sides, using wooden
tongs and chopsticks to turn them. Drain on paper towels.
Puree the soup in batches in
a blender or food processor and, using a rubber spatula, scrape the puree into
a large saucepan. For extra smoothness, work the puree through a food mill into
a large saucepan. The soup can be made to this point a day or two ahead and
chilled. If it thickens too much on reheating, thin it with a little water)
To finish bring the soup to a
boil. Add the crème fraiche or cream and pepper and taste for seasoning. Serve
the soup, steaming hot, in a warmed tureen, soup plates, or bowls decorated
with the herbs, if you like. Pass the optional croutons separately.
Recipe extracted from Back road Bistros,
Farm House Fare by Jane Sigal
This is one of my favorite recipes. A soup again, however it blends so while with the thyme cream fraiche. I think you'll like it.
Roasted
pumpkin and leek soup served with Parmesan croutons and thyme crème
fraiche.
A perfect way to begin a
holiday party. Warm,
steaming soup that reflects the season.
Two
cups of chopped diced pumpkin in ¼ inch cubes
One
cup of chopped leeks
6
cups of chicken stock or bouillon
One
clove of garlic
Salt and pepper to
taste
1
tsp of thyme
2
tbls of butter
1
cup of cubed French bread
2
tbls of olive oil
2
tbls of Parmesan cheese
½
cup of sour cream
½
lemon
Sauté pumpkin, garlic and
leeks in butter till leeks are translucent and pumpkin has just a bit of color.
And chicken stock and allow to simmer. Add thyme, salt
and pepper and adjust to taste.
Prepare croutons by mixing
cubes with olive oil and Parmesan cheese. Bake in oven till golden brown at 350
degrees.
Prepare a quick crème fraiche by mixing the sour cream and juice of half a lemon.
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| Lancaster County Pumpkin Recipe |
Here is one more for those crisp late fall mornings.... this one you will love with a warm cup of coffee!
Sour cream pumpkin
coffeecake
Topping
One Tbl of sifted flour
1 ¼ tsp cinnamon
¾ c of dark brown sugar
2 tbl unsalted butter
3 ½ ounces corn flakes
Stir dry ingredients except for corn flakes in a bowl. Cut
in the butter till it resembles coarse meal. Do not over mix. Stir in the corn
flakes and crush a bit. Set at room temperature.
Cake
2 c of sifted all-purpose flour
1 tsp double acting baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
Scant ¼ tsp salt
4 ounces unsalted butter
1 c granulated sugar
3 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 ½ cups of purred pumpkin
Sift together dry ingredients and set aside.
In a large bowl of a mixer, beat sugar and butter. Add eggs
one at a time until thoroughly incorporated. On low speed, add the dry
ingredients in three additions alternating with the sour cream, beating only
until incorporated after each addition. Remove bowl from mixer and slowly fold
in the pumpkin. Turn into greased 13*9*2 pan and add topping. Bake for 30 to 35
minutes in a 350 degree preheated oven.
