Pumpkin from Scratch
A few years ago, I decided to investigate how to prepare pumpkin purée (AKA, the way you actually use pumpkin in recipes) from scratch, and it’s pretty dang easy.
Servings: 8
Calories: 50kcal
Equipment
- large knife, such as a chef’s knife
- small knife, such as a paring knife
- baking sheet
- spoon (preferably grapefruit spoon or serrated spoon)
- blender or food processor
- freezer size plastic storage bags
Ingredients
- 1 pie pumpkin
- 1 cup of water be prepared for more if you live in a dry climate
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350℉.
- With a large knife, cut the top inch off of the pumpkin (to remove the stem), then cut the pumpkin in half. Using a spoon, scoop the seeds and the pulp out of the center.
- Pop the halved pumpkins onto a baking sheet skin side down. There’s no need to grease the baking sheet.
- Roast the pumpkin for about an hour until the pumpkin is golden brown. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
- Once the pumpkin is cool enough to handle, start to peel off the outer later. Using the small paring knife to help you, peel back the rind from the meat of the pumpkin. Often, I have to cut the edges but the center rind comes off easily.
- Put the pumpkin meat in your blender or food processor. Add water a few tablespoons at a time to help make the pumpkin smooth. If you add too much water, you can always strain it out through a fine mesh strainer.
- Pour the puréed pumpkin into a freezer bag, and lay it flat to store easily. 2 cups of purée equal one standard (15 oz) can of pumpkin.
Notes
This pumpkin purée can be refrigerated for a week or frozen for up to a year. It makes QUITE a bit of pumpkin purée.
Nutrition
Calories: 50kcal
