Smashing pumpkins: save the squash for carving and use canned for recipes - food matters - Recipe

Better Nutrition, Oct, 2001 by Patti Woods-Lavoie

One of the guilty pleasures that I like to indulge in from time to time is to curl up on the sofa on Sunday afternoons and tune in to the lineup of cooking shows on public television. I love them all--"Julia and Jacques," "America's Test Kitchen," "Cooking Secrets of the CIA."

One day in particular, however, a tidbit of advice offered on one of these shows made me want to jump up and shout "Hallelujah!" And here it is: There's no need to make your own pureed pumpkin when you can use the stuff right out of the can.

Yes, freedom at last! My suspicions were confirmed and I was now free to use one of my favorite canned foods with my head held high. Now I no longer have to shamefully hide the cans in the cupboard behind the bags of arborio rice and cornmeal, and I can give people my pumpkin pie recipe with a clean conscience. If canned pumpkin is good enough for professional chefs, it's good enough for me!

If you think about it, it seems obvious. Canned pumpkin is just that--pumpkin that's been baked until it turns to mush and is then canned. You can save yourself a lot of time by buying the pre-made variety. Note, however, that there is a difference between this and the canned "pumpkin pie filling." That stuff ranks right up there with canned cherry and blueberry pie fillings, which are best to be avoided.

Since that initial revelation, I've heard other chefs make similar confessions, albeit reluctantly at times. Nick Stellino, on "Cucina Amore," was giving instructions for a pumpkin-based recipe. He said, "First you prepare the pumpkin." Then the film sped up and showed him going through a laborious process of cutting the pumpkin, cleaning it, putting it in the oven, cooking it for hours and then mashing it. "Or," he said, once the film slowed down, "you can use a can of pureed pumpkin." Now that's more like it!

Cultivated pumpkins have been around for hundreds of years and were one of the food staples of American Indians. Today it seems that we in the U.S. use it mainly for desserts, as in pumpkin pie, cheesecake and bread. But maybe we should learn from other cultures, such as Japanese and South American, where pumpkin finds its way into main dishes, as well. After all, pumpkin is a great source of beta-carotene (pro-vitamin A), and also has fiber, potassium, magnesium, vitamin C and folio acid. The seeds, which make a great snack, have been reputed to help conditions such as irritable bladder and prostate complaints, and were used by American Indians to help with similar conditions.

So this October, save the whole pumpkins for carving and proudly stock up on, you guessed it--canned pumpkin.

Toast your own

Pumpkin seeds make a great snack and are easy to make. Once you have "gutted" your pumpkin, wash the seeds in a colander to remove any pumpkin fibers. Thoroughly dry seeds and arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet that has been prepped with cooking spray. Bake in a 300 degree oven for about 30 to 40 minutes, or until they just begin to turn golden. Remove from oven and season immediately with salt. To eat, remove the white hull to get to the green seed.

See our October web site--www.betternutrition.com--for a list of pumpkin festivals!

Curried Pumpkin Soup

Serves 4

Makes a great meal on a chilly autumn evening.
Serve with a green salad.

4 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, chopped
1 Tbsp. butter
15 oz. pumpkin
1 tsp. curry powder
1 bay leaf
  Salt and pepper
3 cups chicken broth
1/2 Tbsp. honey
1 cup silken tofu
  Garlic croutons
  (recipe follows) (optional)
  Pumpkin seeds (optional)

Over medium-high heat in a Dutch oven, saute
the onion and garlic in butter until soft, about 3
to 5 minutes.

Add pumpkin, curry powder, bay leaf and
salt and pepper to taste. Stir until ingredients
are mixed.

Stir in chicken broth and honey. Cover pot
and simmer on low, stirring occasionally, for 20
minutes.

Remove pot from heat and carefully ladle soup
into a blender or food processor. Add tofu and
process until mixture is completely blended.
Serve with garlic croutons and pumpkin seeds.
Garlic Croutons

French baguette
Olive oil
Garlic powder

Slice baguette into 1/2 inch-thick slices. Brush
both sides of each slice with olive oil and sprinkle
tops with garlic powder. Arrange on a baking
sheet or aluminum foil and toast until golden.
Pumpkin Polenta
with Garlic Mushrooms

Makes 24 appetizer-sized portions

The flavors of fall are accentuated in this easy
but elegant recipe.

For polenta:

2 cups cornmeal
  (preferably stone ground)
1 Tbsp. salt
5 cups water
1/2 cup pureed pumpkin

For mushrooms:

4 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. olive oil
10 oz. sliced mushrooms (regular white
  or a mixture of wild mushrooms)
1 cup chicken or vegetable stock

In a medium pot, heat water to a boil. Slowly
add cornmeal and salt, whisking the whole
time. Once it is all added, whisk to fully incorporate,
then cover the pot and heat on medium-low
for 15 minutes, stirring often.

Stir pumpkin into cornmeal mixture, then
cover for another 15 minutes, stirring often. The
mixture is ready when it is thick and smooth
and pulls away from the sides of the pot.

Grease a baking sheet. Pour polenta onto
the sheet, spreading it evenly with a spatula.
Cool 1 hour to overnight in the refrigerator.

When polenta has set, remove from refrigerator
and cut into circles using a cookie cutter or 2-inch
squares using a knife. Leave on cookie sheet
and stick under the broiler for 8 to 10 minutes, or
until polenta just begins to brown. Remove polenta
from oven and allow to cool for 1 to 2 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, saute garlic in
olive oil until fragrant, about 1 to 2 minutes. Stir
in mushrooms. Add stock and simmer until
mushrooms are softened and most of the liquid
has been absorbed, about 10 minutes.

To serve, remove polenta circles or squares
with a spatula and spoon mushroom mixture
on top.
Maple Pumpkin Mash

Serves 4 to 6

Try this as an alternative to sweet potatoes or
mashed potatoes, or with vanilla frozen yogurt
as a dessert.

15 oz. pumpkin
1/2 cup silken tofu
1 egg
2 Tbsp. maple syrup
2 teaspoons cinnamon

For topping (optional):

2 Tbsp. brown sugar
3 Tbsp. chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a blender,
combine pumpkin, tofu, egg, maple syrup and
cinnamon until smooth. Transfer mixture to a
greased 8x8-inch casserole dish. Sprinkle with
optional brown sugar and pecans. Bake for 30
minutes. Serve as a side dish or as a dessert
with vanilla frozen yogurt.