Creative Women
How to cook: with pumpkins
It’s that time of the year when leaves turn beautiful warm colors of reds, yellows, and golden, and of course, it's pumpkin time! Whether you carve it for Halloween or decorate your house and garden with it, try using pumpkins in your cooking.
The sweet and earthy taste with a dense texture, is very versatile: from starter to dessert, pumpkin can make a delicious dish.
My favorite way to cook it is to roast it at around 180 degrees Celsius for about 45-55 minutes. Cutting it into small cubes reduces that time to around 30 minutes. To check if it’s done, use a fork. There should be no resistance.
The roasting process brings out the sweetness in the pumpkin. Before putting the cubed pumpkin in the oven, I drizzle some oil, salt, and chili flakes. You can serve this as a side dish as-is, or you can take it further: mash it, puree it for a pie, and even make a soup by blending it together with a vegetable broth.
To get more from your pumpkin, consider adding some cinnamon and nutmeg, or take the herb route with rosemary and sage.
Don’t forget about the pumpkin seeds! I love to drizzle them (after removing the shell) with maple syrup, chili flakes, and a dash of salt, and put them in the oven for about 15 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius. Don’t drench the seeds in syrup, otherwise they won't have time to get crunchy. A perfect snack, or topping for your salads, or fall-ready soups!
Gabi Ruijten-Dodoiu
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