Because fresh food in general tastes better and is often cheaper than processed food, I have put together a short demo on how to roast your own pumpkin:

1. Choose a firm, small pie pumpkin, not more than 3-4 pounds; smaller pumpkins tend to be a bit sweeter




2. Rinse the pumpkin under warm water, removing any dirt or debris




3. Cut the pumpkin in half on a large cutting board, with a sharp knife




4. Scoop out the seeds with a metal spoon, I use an old measuring spoon that has a nice edge





5. Lay the pumpkin face side down in a large baking dish
6. Cover with ¼ inch water




7. Bake at 350° for 45-60 minutes (depending on size) or until tender, using a fork to check
8. Remove from oven and scoop out insides, discarding skin




9. Store in refrigerator in a glass mason jar
10. Keeps for 5 days in refrigerator (at the ready for your pie, muffin and custard endeavors)

If you are in a rush, cut the pumpkin into smaller pieces and it will cook faster. The pumpkin in the picture above was rather large (for a pie pumpkin) and I cooked it for 1 ½ hours. This was far too long (I became distracted during the endeavor) as you can see the pumpkin is rather overdone. However, I think it will still be usable for various dishes.

The above pumpkin preparation technique applies to any winter squash: butternut, buttercup, acorn, kabocha, hubbard, and more. I often substitute these squash in my recipes that call for pumpkin which works very well. For another handy little pumpkin cooking how to, click here.

Here’s a list of all my gluten free recipes that call for fresh pumpkin:

Here’s wishing you much fun in your pumpkin adventures!