One pumpkin, three recipes!
Everything we grow here we eat and that usually means lots of one vegetable or fruit whenever they are in season . It also means getting creative with what produce we have, so not to get bored of the same thing. I thought I would share the "journey" of our big pumpkin, planted as a seed and grown here, it was too big to use in just one meal so I used it in three different dishes: - open pumpkin and cherry tomato lasagne, pumpkin, paprika and red pepper soup and pumpkin and ginger cheese cake!
Pumpkin, red pepper and paprika soup
This is a "Hairy Bikers Diet Club" recipe that I have substituted pumpkin for a squash.
Serves 6
Half a good size pumpkin
2 red peppers
Vegetable oil
1 onion
1 litre vegetable stock
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
Freshly ground black pepper
1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees c / gas 6. Cut the pumpkin into large pieces so they will fit in a roasting tin ( no need to peel it but remove the seeds ) and drizzle with vegetable oil. Cook for about 25minutes then add the red peppers whole and cook for another 15 minutes or until the pumpkin is soft. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
2. Scoop the pumpkin flesh from the skin and remove the skins from the peppers and discard the seeds, set to one side while you gently sweat the chopped onion and garlic in some vegetable oil until softened. Do not let them brown.
3. Add the pumpkin, peppers, stock and paprika and cook for another 10 minutes. Season with pepper to taste.
4. Whizz the soup in a blender until smooth, then gently reheat to serve.
This soup will happily store in the fridge for a couple of days and the flavours will mature
Open Pumpkin and Cherry Tomato Lasagne
This is a recipe from the Daily Mail that I have tweaked a bit.
Serves 2
300g pumpkin
100g cherry tomatos
125g mozzarella
Vegetable oil
Handful of baby spinach
4 lasagna sheets
1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees \ gas 6. Slice deseeded pumpkin into 3cm wide wedges, no need to peel. (I used about a quarter of my pumpkin for 3 of us)
2. Toss pumpkin in vegetable oil in a roasting tin and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 30 minutes. Add tomatoes to roasting tin for another 5 minutes.
3. In a large pan of boiling water add the lasagna sheets and cook for 8 minutes until al dente.
4. Divide the sheets between two plates, layering the roast pumpkin, cherry tomatoes and mozzarella.
5. Scatter with baby spinach leaves and drizzle with the juices from the roasting pan
Pumpkin and Ginger Cheesecake
This BBC Food Recipe. Serves 6-8
You will need an 8in springform tin
10 1/2oz pumpkin, peeled and cut into bite size pieces
1oz butter
2 tbsp caster sugar
3 tbsp ginger syrup ( from a jar of stem ginger)
7 fl oz double cream, whipped
7 oz cream cheese
3 1/2 oz thick greek yogurt
3 pieces stem ginger, finely chopped, plus another piece to decorate
For The Base
12 gingernut biscuits
2 oz butter, melted
1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees / gas 6
2. For the filling place the chopped pumpkin in a roasting tin. Dot with butter, sprinkle over the caster sugar and drizzle with the ginger syrup. Bake in the oven for 30-35 minutes, or until the pumpkin is soft.
3. For the base, whizz the biscuits in a food processor until they resemble bread crumbs. Place the crumbs in a bowl and stir in the melted butter until well combined.
4. Line the base of the spring form tin with a round of non stick paper. Press the gingernut crumbs into the base evenly with the back of a spoon to form a smooth base.
5. For the filling, put the roasted pumpkin and any cooking juices into a food processor ( I used a liquidiser ) and pulse until you have a smooth puree. Taste and add more sugar if required.
6. In a bowl mix the whipped cream ( I whipped it until it was fairly stiff ) cream cheese and yogurt. Add the stem ginger and mix well ( the mixture stiffens further at this point ). Swirl in the pumpkin puree to the mixture, then spoon it on the crumb base. Smooth over the top and refrigerate for 1-2 hours or until set.
7. When ready to serve, remove the spring form tin ( I used a mini blow torch to gently heat the ring before undoing the spring ) and decorate the top of the cheesecake with the extra stem ginger
