Tidewater Kitchen - October 2011

Pumpkins and Palates

by

Pamela Meredith-Doyle

The sight of pumpkins is a sure sign that autumn has arrived. Carved and decorated, they greet trick-or-treaters, but their spooky guises don’t stop us from savoring this treat in dishes such as pumpkin soup, pumpkin peanut brittle, fluff pie, biscuits and more.
For making pies and cookies, buy a Sugar Pumpkin, not a carving pumpkin. Sugar pumpkins are much smaller and sweeter. Look for pumpkins that seem heavy for their size and have a dull rind. Sugar pumpkins have flesh that is less stringy, sweeter and more tender that those use to make Jack-o-lanterns.
Nutritionally speaking, pumpkins are hard to beat, topping the list of superfoods with fiber, Vitamin C, potassium and beta carotene.
Pumpkins will last for months – but by fixing them so many creative ways, I am betting yours won’t last that long!

ROASTED PUMPKIN
Serves 2
Preheat oven to 400°. Cut a small sugar pumpkin in half and scoop out the seeds. Drizzle the pumpkin with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and season with 3/4 teaspoon of salt.
Place the cut side down on a baking sheet. Roast until very soft, about 35 to 45 minutes.
Note: If you need to roast it quicker, place a pumpkin half, cut side down, on a plate and microwave it on high for about 15 minutes. Check it occasionally as time may vary with size.

MASHED PUMPKIN
Serves 4
Scrape out the flesh from half a roasted pumpkin. In a saucepan over medium heat, add pumpkin and 2 tablespoons maple syrup and cook until warm, mashing to combine. Add 1 tablespoon of butter and serve.

PUMPKIN MUSHROOM SOUP
Serves 10
1 stick butter
2 large onions
2 lbs. sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup flour
3 t. curry powder
4 cups chicken stock
1 lb.-13 oz. canned or mashed cooked pumpkin
1/4 cup honey
2 cups cream
2 cups milk

Sauté onions and mushrooms in butter until onions are translucent.
Add the flour and curry and cook for several minutes, stirring to incorporate the flour.
Add the chicken stock and pumpkin; cover and simmer for 40 minutes.
Process in a food processor until smooth.
Return to saucepan and add honey, milk and cream. Reheat to serving temperature.
Ladle soup into glass bowls, or make your own pumpkin bowls, and garnish with freshly sliced mushrooms.
Note: May be prepared one day ahead and refrigerated. Gently reheat before serving. Try making your own soup bowls by cutting 1/3 of the top off the small pumpkins and scooping out the insides with an ice cream scoop.

PUMPKIN PEANUT BRITTLE
Yield 2 cups
2 cups sugar
1 cup corn syrup
1/2 t. sea salt
1 t. baking soda
1/2 cup raw peanuts
1/2 cup toasted pumpkin seeds (recipe to follow)

Combine sugar, corn syrup, sea salt and baking soda in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir with a wooden spoon until sugar has dissolved.
Add peanuts and pumpkin seeds.
Cook over moderate heat until candy thermometer reaches 293°. Quickly pour into a well-greased 9- x 13-inch pan. Let cool and break into pieces. Store in an airtight container.

TOASTED PUMPKIN SEEDS
Yield 2 cups
For snacking, toss seeds with 2 teaspoons of ground dried rosemary and seasoned salt before baking.
Preheat oven to 250°. Clean 1/2 cup of fresh pumpkin seeds. Toss seeds in 1 tablespoon of canola oil until seeds are well coated. Spread seeds onto an ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 1 to 1-1/4 hours, stirring occasionally until golden and crisp.

PUMPKIN FLUFF PIE
2 pies
I can eat this for breakfast as it is literally my favorite pie! It is heavenly!

2 8-inch pastry shells
3 large egg yolks (reserve 2 egg whites)
1 cup sugar
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/3 cup butter, melted
1 t. ground cinnamon
1/2 t. ground nutmeg
pinch of sea salt
1 t. lemon extract
1 t. vanilla
3/4 cup whole milk, scalding hot
3/4 cup heavy cream, scalding hot
2 large egg whites, room temperature
Sweetened whipped cream

Preheat oven to 400°.
Prepare pastry shells and set aside.
In a large bowl, beat egg yolks and gradually add the sugar. Beat this mixture until it is light in color. Add the pumpkin, melted butter, cinnamon, nutmeg, sea salt, lemon extract, vanilla, hot milk and cream. Beat until thoroughly mixed. Set aside to cool.
Beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Gently fold into cooled pumpkin mixture. Pour evenly into 2 unbaked pastry shells.
Bake at 400° for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 350° and continue baking for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the filling is set. Serve with a dollop of whipped cream.

PUMPKIN SPICE CAKE
I have been making this cake for years. It is delicious!

1-1/2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1-1/4 cups oil
1 (15-oz.) canned or mashed cooked pumpkin
1/2 t. ground nutmeg
1/2 t. ground cloves
1/2 t. ground ginger
3 t. ground cinnamon
3 cups unsifted flour
1 cup raisins
1/2 cup chopped nuts
2 t. baking powder
2 t. baking soda
1 t. salt

Cream the sugar, oil, eggs and pumpkin together in a large bowl. Sift together the seasonings and flour and add to the bowl. Fold in the nuts and raisins.
Bake in a greased and floured tube pan or 12-cup bundt pan at 350° for 1 hour.
Cool and sprinkle with powdered sugar.
Note: Be sure the cake is completely cool before trying to remove it from the bundt pan. If you don’t, you will have a handful of crumbs!

CHOCOLATE PUMPKIN PECAN FUDGE
This recipe was given to me by a dear friend from North Carolina.

4 cups sugar
1 cup milk
3 T. light corn syrup
1 cup canned pumpkin
3 T. butter, cut into small pieces
1 t. vanilla
2 cups pecans, chopped
6 oz. semisweet chocolate, melted

Combine the sugar, milk, corn syrup and pumpkin in a heavy 4-quart saucepan. Cook over moderate heat, stirring until sugar has dissolved. Continue cooking until candy thermometer registers 238°.
Remove from heat and add butter, but do not stir it into the mixture.
Allow the mixture to cool down to 140°. Then stir in the vanilla and pecans.
Beat mixture for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Pour immediately into a buttered 9-inch square pan.
Let the fudge cool until it begins to harden. Swirl melted chocolate over the top. Cut into squares and let cool completely.
Note: Fudge can be stored between sheets of wax paper in an airtight container for 2 weeks.

PUMPKIN BREAD with CREAM CHEESE and PRESERVES
Yield 2 loaves
Great for a brunch or as a snack.

2 cups sugar
3/4 cup expeller pressed canola oil
4 eggs
1 (15 oz.) canned pumpkin
3-1/3 cups flour
2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. baking powder
1 t. sea salt
2 t. pumpkin pie spice
1 t. ground cinnamon
1 t. ground nutmeg
2/3 cup water
2 t. vanilla
1 cup chopped pecans
Cream Cheese and Peach Preserves

Preheat oven to 325°.
Combine the sugar and oil, stirring well.
Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in the pumpkin.
Combine the next 7 ingredients and add to the pumpkin mixture alternately with water, beginning and ending with flour mixture.
Stir in vanilla and pecans.
Spoon the batter into 2 lightly greased 9x5x3-inch loaf pans. Bake at 325° for 1 hour and 10 minutes to 1 hour and 20 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Cool bread in pans for 10 minutes, then remove from pans and cool on wire racks. Serve with cream cheese and peach preserves.

CREAM CHEESE AND PEACH PRESERVES
3/4 cup peach preserves
1/4 t. ground ginger
1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened

Combine the peach preserves with the ginger. Spoon the preserves over a block of softened cream cheese.

BLACK WALNUT PUMPKIN BISCUITS
This batch of biscuits has an intriguing flavor. It may over-brown on the bottom, so use a light-colored baking sheet - not a non-stick baking sheet. If you must use jelly, choose a delicate apple jelly so you don’t mask the flavor of the pumpkin.

2 cups flour
2 T. sugar
1 T. baking powder
1 t. baking soda
1/4 t. sea salt
1/4 t. ground cinnamon
1/4 t. ground nutmeg
1/4 t. ground allspice
1 stick butter, cold
1/3 cup finely chopped black walnuts
2/3 cup canned or mashed cooked pumpkin
1/2 cup buttermilk, (additional if needed)
Sugar

Preheat oven to 450°.
Sift together the flour, 2 tablespoons of sugar, baking powder and soda, sea salt and spices into a large bowl.
Cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add the nuts.
In a small bowl, whisk together the pumpkin and buttermilk. Add it to the flour mixture and stir to combine. The dough will be stiff and not all the flour will be incorporated. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured cloth and knead gently a few times to work in all the flour.
Roll out the dough to 1/2-inch thickness and cut with a 2-inch round cutter. Transfer the biscuits to a lightly oiled shiny baking sheet, and sprinkle the tops with sugar.
Bake for 10 minutes. Do not let them get too brown. Serve immediately with butter.