I unofficially deem this Sugar Pumpkin Week here on Oh She Glows. No wait, make that officially!
I’m not talking canned pumpkin this week.
I’m certainly not talking large carving pumpkins this week.
But sweet, cute-as-a-button sugar pumpkins. The ones that started showing up quite early in my grocery store at the end of August (thank you Organic Garage!). Often just 2-4 pounds, sugar pumpkins (also known as pie pumpkins or pumpkin pie squash) are sweeter than larger carving pumpkins, making them perfect for all of your favourite pumpkin dishes. Their flesh is also firmer and less stringy than carving pumpkins.
My goals for this week are to show you how simple it is to prepare a sugar pumpkin whether its roasting, puréeing, toasting the seeds, or making recipes. It’s really much easier and faster than you might think (at least it was for me!) and it’s nice to take a break from canned pumpkin once in a while. The flavour of a fresh roasted pumpkin is quite different from the canned variety; it’s a bit earthier and nuttier, not to mention so buttery when roasted. A side-by-side taste comparison of canned pumpkin versus freshly roasted pumpkin will make your head explode. It’s definitely worth the extra work now and then.
I hope my photos will inspire you to try it out for yourself if you haven’t already done so. For the pumpkin pros out there, feel free to share you favourite tips and recipes in the comments. If you can’t find a pie pumpkin in your area yet, feel free to try this with butternut squash. The roasting process is pretty much the same and the outcome is just as delicious.
All set?
Roasting 101:
1. Preheat the oven to 350F and grab small 2-3 pound sugar pumpkin(s). I like to roast a couple 2-lb. pumpkins at the same time. Remember – we’re not looking for the huge carving pumpkins here.
First things first, sharpen your knife! You don’t want to use a dull knife on any squash…or food for that matter.
2. Slice the stem off before slicing in half so you don’t have to slice through the stem.
I forgot to in this photo below, but it’s much easier when you remove the top! Some people prefer to slice off both ends and then peel the entire pumpkin before roasting, but I find it easier to peel the skin after roasting – much like with roasted beets.
3. Slice in half.
4. With a sharp-edged spoon (I use a metal tablespoon with a sharp edge or you can use a metal ice cream scoop), scoop out the seeds & guts. Make sure you clean & save the seeds for roasting. I’ll show you my favourite way to roast the seeds coming up in a future post. Whatever you do, do not throw them out!
5. Brush inside with oil (optional, but I like to) and place face down on baking sheet lined with parchment paper. I roasted two 1.9-lb. sugar pumpkins. They are so tiny and could all fit on my roasting pan!
6. Roast at 350F for about 45-50 minutes. The exact time will vary depending on the size of the pumpkin(s) and you may need more time. The skin will be slightly darker and you should be able to poke a fork quite easily through (see image below).
Here is my pumpkin ready to come out of the oven. As you can see, the skin is a deep orange, slightly wrinkled, and my fork could easily slide through.
6b) I could not resist sticking my fork in and tasting my first (very hot) bite. YUM!! If you want to stop here, just give it a good sprinkling of Herbamare and freshly ground black pepper. Then dig in!
7. Let the pumpkin cool for 10 minutes before handling. Grab a large spoon and peel away the very thin skin. It comes off almost effortlessly. At this point, you can use the flesh in all kinds of dishes – soups, casseroles, risotto, pies, etc.
Steamy!
Into the compost goes the skin. Unless you’re Eric, you might put it in a smoothie…(I joke, I joke).
Today, I decided to make pumpkin puree for a recipe I was planning (hint #1!).
8. If making a puree: Place the pumpkin flesh into the blender and blend away until super smooth. I used my tamper stick on the Vitamix to push all the pumpkin down until it got going. Let it go for a good minute or two – you don’t want any clumps left.
The result was out of this world – so smooth and buttery!
3.8 pounds of pumpkin (weighed before roasting) made 4-4.5 cups of pumpkin puree. Not too shabby at all! As a rule of thumb, 1 small sugar pumpkin should make enough puree to equal one 15-oz. can.
At this point you can drain the pureed pumpkin in a cheesecloth to remove excess water or you can use it as is. I didn’t bother draining it because I knew I’d be cooking it down for the recipe (hint #2!).
Whatever you do – be sure to save the seeds for roasting.
Coming up – the recipe I used my pumpkin puree for and my favourite way to roast pumpkin seeds.
What’s your favourite way to enjoy fresh pumpkin?
Thanks, I roasted pie pumpkins the other day, and the pumpkin taste was not what I expected. It was good, but not real pumpkinie. My guess is that they did not get a chance to caramelize enough. I attempted to fire roast them, and my heat was not where I needed, and I did not roast them long enough.
Great blog with beautiful pictures. I have to tell you though I’ve been roasting pumpkins for years and I have just recently started roasting them whole. Just clean well, put on a pan and roast for 1.5 hours at 350 depending on size. Let cool enough to handle and slice, take out seeds and peel. It’s super easy, and to your other blog post on roasting seeds – it is much easier to separate the seeds from strings and you don’t have to boil them before you roast!
We use an electric knife to cut ours and it works like a charm. I also use a pressure cooker to cook the pumpkin. Cut it in fourths and place in the bottom on the rack, put about an inch of water in the pan and pressure at 10 lbs for ABOUT 5 MINUTES. The pumpkin slides off the skin. We then can ours for later use.
I really enjoyed reading all the comments.
It is the day before Thanksgiving and in my October Organic Food Delivery I received 3 sugar pumpkins! Thanks to you, they are roasting right now! Going to make a pumpkin pie and salted caramel pumpkin squares! I will let you know how they turn out!
I have a 36 lbs fairytale!! SO THANK YOU FOR THIS!
Excellent post! I was looking for written directions for a friend and your blog explained the sugar pie pumpkin phenomenon beautifully! I have been using homemade sugar pie pumpkin puree in my baking and soups for the past 4 years and would only use canned pumpkin during a zombie apocalypse. And yes, my head has exploded several times! LOL
I grew sugar pumpkins this year and I have been saving them to roast…thank you for this tutorial…this is my plan today, as the children are home from school because of snow, and because I am imagining pumpkin soup (made with pure turkey broth). Where is your pumpkin seed tutorial? I may have to do that tomorrow!
I’m glad to know how to successfully roast pumpkin seeds. Thanks for the great post!
Some extra tips:
If your fresh sugar pumpkin is hard to cut, put it in the microwave for two minutes, after knocking off the stem. It will cut easily.
I cut my pumpkin in half. The easiest way to separate the seeds is to pull them out with your fingers, BEFORE scraping the strings out. Much less messy.
This summer I grew sugar pumpkins in with my flowers. They crawled all over my perennials, but the flowers didn’t seem to mind and it was always fun to see where the pumpkins ended up. We had a great little crop!
Sugar pumpkins are great stuffed! I brown a half pound of small bite-sized pork, small strips of beef or cuts of chicken. Stove top stuffing of your choice can be prepared according to the box then mix the sauteed meat into the stuffing mixture. Cut the top off your sugar pumpkin the way you would make a lid for a Jack-o-lantern; don’t cut a face! Clean out and save the seeds. Stuff the sugar pumpkin with your stove-top mixture, replace the “lid” and bake at 350 degrees 45-50 minutes. When serving, allow guests to dig deep and wide to scoop some pumpkin along with the stuffing. Deliscrumptious!
Is the pumpkin purée you make what you would use for pie?
Just thought I would chime in with the addition that it is just fine to use the pumpkin you carved for this. Unless you are a pumpkin gourmet (I’m sure they’re out there!), you will not notice a difference in taste between the sugar pumpkin and the carving pumpkin when you taste it in your recipe. My pumpkin pies always get two thumbs up and I use the same pumpkin I carved. Don’t waste more money by buying the little pie pumpkins. If you’ve already got several carving pumpkins just use those instead and you will be very pleased with the results.
I was so excited to find this post. I have never used fresh pumpkin before. I have two roasting as I write this now. Going to be used for a homemade pumpkin crisp for my grand-daughters 3rd Birthday. I just love any kind of dessert made with pumpkin!
Thank you for your great pumpkin recipes! This is the first year I’ve cooked a whole pumpkin and I followed your instructions for the seeds and all. Everything has turned out perfect. I’ve actually done it twice this year and it’s only Oct 2nd! The seeds are so good! My kids and I just eat them off the pan and try to save some for the hubs but it’s hard! I have made tons of great pumpkin dishes and still have some purée left. I know I’ll be doing more b/c I have to have more seeds if nothing else!!! Thanks again!
i roasted the pumpkin yesterday came out perfect just like your recipe today I am making pumpkin pies soo good thank you (vivian)
I want to roast a pumpkin that I bought. I will try to roast it at 350 degrees. I shall scrape out the seeds and strings after roasting. Let it drain until dry. I will make a pumpkin custard pie. I also want to know if I can freeze two cups of pumpkin in a plastic container for later use for making pumpkin pies? I have a hugh pumpkin (crook neck pumpkin) and I shall have a lot left to make pies.
Thanks for your help in advance.
Opal Hari
Question! I would like to use my vita-mix too but would like to know what speed you use. I would be afraid I would get pumpkin juice! Thanks
Curious – have you ever used the skin for anything? When I roast butternut squash, I usually puree the skin with the flesh and it works beautifully. Perhaps pumpkin skin is a little tougher. Last week I actually boiled a sugar pumpkin and pureed skin and all (I add to my dog and cat’s food, and either roast the seeds or feed them to my chickens). I am going to try the roasting method this weekend – then onto pumpkin butter :) Great tutorial – thanks!
I often eat the skin when I roast the pumpkin (I will chop it up and roast it) it’s pretty good!
It does taste good my family loves it
Hi, Angela. I just found your site today as I was searching for pumpkin recipes. I wanted to offer my own suggestions as roasting pumpkins for the purée for use in autumn cooking is an annual rite of passage for me. My method is to dice the pumpkin into about one inch pieces. I Then spread the pieces on a rimmed baking sheet, lined with tin foil coated with non stick spray. Roasting in a 350 oven only takes about 30 minutes. When it is done, I put the pumpkin pieces skin on into a food mill instead of a food processor or blender. The food mill does a wonderful job of separating out the fibrous parts from the purée and yes, some of the skin finds its way through as little bits of orange, but I like this. Afterward, I put the purée into a non stick stock pot and on very low heat, I cook down the purée to remove some more moisture and further concentrate the flavor of the pumpkin (this step would only be done, depending on what I was using the puree for). I also will measure out one cup portions of purée and seal in freezer bags as it will keep for one year in the freezer so I always have plenty of fresh pumpkin on hand after the season is over and I never have to resort to canned!
Just thought I would add how wonderful the sugar pumpkins are for stuffing which is what I just did with mine. This was the first year I found the sugar pumpkins locally and much more flavorful and satisfying than the small carved pumpkin I used last year. You can stuff them with any mixture you like.