With an abundance of pumpkins still on shelves, it's a good time to pick up extra pumpkins for savory soups, pies and side dishes. Photo: Jeb Wallace-Brodeur

Pumpkins are not likely to be on your regular grocery list, unless you are shopping for Halloween. Once the holiday is over, pumpkins are no longer quite as popular. Yet farm stands will continue to offer a bountiful display right up through Thanksgiving, when any leftover pumpkins will then be composted to make room for Christmas trees.

Besides, it's often easier to pick up a can of pumpkin puree, which is a staple this time of year for making pies. But the truth is that what is labeled as "pumpkin" is more likely to be butternut squash, since it has far more color and flavor than an ordinary pumpkin. For a real pumpkin pie, it's essential to buy a real pie pumpkin, the small orange orbs sold in many supermarkets as well as local farm stands, that weighs an average of 4 to 5 pounds. Once scooped, quartered and baked for an hour to soften the flesh, the yield will be just enough puree for a good-sized family pie. Pie pumpkins are easy to store in a cool pantry, but they are more fun to use for decorating the dining table, or scooping out for an au natural soup tureen.

Pumpkins are part of the larger garden "cucurbit" family, yet the term pumpkin is generic for "large hard skinned squash" which includes butternut, Cushaw, Hubbard and red Kuri. This family has many cousins, including a host of non-culinary, yet ornamental pumpkins ranging from the tiny mini pumpkins, which are more of a gourd to the state fair giant pumpkins that require a steady diet of milk fed through a straw to pump up the flesh. For cooks seeking the best in flavor, look for types that have culinary merit, rather than entertainment value.

Some of my favorites include a flat-topped pumpkin with stunning deep orange to red coloring that has been making an appearance in farmers markets, which more closely resembles the storybook Cinderella pumpkin. This French heirloom is called Rouge vif d'Etampes and combines much of the best qualities of a pie pumpkin with enough flamboyant color to decorate the porch. Introduced to American gardeners by W.A. Burpee Co. seed catalog in 1883, this variety waned in popularity because of its relatively poor garden performance as compared to the more traditional jack-o'-lantern type, which proved heartier. Yet it makes up for this deficiency in pure beauty, and once the holiday is over, it's the ideal base for soups, with plenty of thick pumpkin meat and a mild flavor that it does not overpower other ingredients.

Getting to know pumpkins and the winter squash family is like taking a walk back in time, since many of our current varieties are the very same genus that have been grown by gardeners for centuries. A true American heirloom is the cheese pumpkin, discovered in the early 1800s and grown by early pioneers, who named it after its resemblance to a wheel of aged cheese due to its creamy tan color and lobed top. An early recipe book describes a very old practice of making a "cheese" where the cheese pumpkins are cooked down to a thick paste, often with watermelon juice to yield a preserve that was dark brown in color, with a slightly sweetened nature similar to apple butter. Yet given the proud status of our dairy state, I think it's best to leave making cheese to real cheesemakers.

Pumpkins and winter squash are grown universally, yet many are regional in nature. Take for instance the banana squash, introduced in 1893. It can weigh between 15 and 100 pounds depending on the variety and is far more popular on the West Coast than the East. Prized for its Creamsicle-colored exterior and flesh, the shape is long and narrow with flavor hints of fresh fruit made even better blended with a dab of butter whisked with warm cream. It's our Vermont equivalent to butternut, which continues to be the most popular all purpose squash in the east, with a thin skin and long neck make to make it easy to peel, and the small seed cavity allows for a higher yield than many other winter squash.

There is no doubt that pumpkins look spectacular on the front porch during the harvest season, and hold promise for cooks seeking a hearty side dish packed with color and vitamins. With an abundance of pumpkins still on the shelves, it's a good time to pick up extra pumpkins for savory soups, pies and side dishes. Or you could do take a tip from my mother, ever the thrifty cook; every Halloween, she'd watch for the last of the trick or treaters to step off the porch, before she'd blow out the candle and bring the jack o lantern into the kitchen. Wielding her largest carving knife, she'd deftly trim off the skin, turning the scary faced orb into a savory pie for dinner the following night.

Whenever I bake pumpkin pie, I still marvel at her ability to create a second life for an otherwise wilting holiday memento.



How to cook a pie pumpkin:

Cut into quarters and place the chunks on a baking dish along with an inch or so of water. Bake at 400 degrees for almost an hour, until the flesh is soft when pierced with a sharp knife. Remove the seeds and the skin. Puree in a food processor until smooth. One pie pumpkin generally yields 3 cups puree, and any extra can be frozen.


Mom's pumpkin pie

Makes one 9-inch pie



1 recipe for pastry dough or 1 pre-made pie crust

1 1/2 cups cooked and pureed pie pumpkin

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup dark brown sugar

3 Tbsps. dark rum (optional)

1 Tbsp. unsulfured molasses

1 1/2 tsps. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground ginger

1/8 tsp. ground cloves

2 large eggs

1 cup milk, heated to scalding

Whipped cream for serving



Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 450 degrees.

Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured work surface to a 12-inch round about 1/8-inch thick. Fit into a 9-inch pie plat. Fold the overhang under the pastry and flute the edges. Refrigerate the crust while making the filling.

Whisk the pumpkin, granulated sugar, brown sugar, rum, molasses, cinnamon, ginger and cloves until the brown sugar dissolves. One at a time, beat in the eggs, then the milk. Pour into the crust. Bake for 10 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees and continue baking until the knife inserted in the center comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Transfer to a wire cake rack and cool completely. Serve at room temperature.



Ellen Ogden writes about food, chefs and restaurants for Vermont Sunday Magazine from Manchester Village.