In depth gardening advice from an expert gardener
Are you planning your Thanksgiving feast yet? When you do, consider serving Kabocha, pronounced kah-bow-cha as part of the meal. The Latin name for kabocha is Cucurbita maxima and the common name is Japanese pumpkin or Japanese squash.
This delicious, sweet tasting pumpkin/squash is one of the sweetest of all the pumpkins/squashes. You eat almost every part of the Kabocha. You don’t have to peel it because both the skin and flesh are eaten. (see here)
Pumpkin by UmmAbdrahmaan..
The easiest way to make pumpkin ready to make the pie is to cut it horizontally through the middle to get two “halves.” Try to cut so those are real halves to cook evenly. I scoop out all the seeds and save them. I then take a grapefruit serrated spoon and scrape out as much of the strings that are in the pumpkin cavities. You don’t want those strings. Then I take the largest jelly roll type tin* I have- you need sides on the tin- and put the cut edges of the pumpkin cut side down on the sheet- the skin side and stem are facing upward. (see here) Some people put a little grease on the bottom of the sheet and put a little water in the bottom of the sheet. Those who do this say it keeps the pumpkin moist. You can do this if you want.  TheGardenLady doesn’t bother doing these two things because I find that the pumpkin sends out so much water that it is unnecessary. I find that I may have to take a turkey baster to remove a lot of the liquid given off in the baking of the pumpkin so that it doesn’t overflow the pan and dirty the oven. Then I put the oven temperature up to about 450 degrees Farenheit (230 degrees Celsius). I check on the pumpkin in about 45 minutes- depending on the size will determine how long it remains in the oven. I leave it baking until it is soft. When you press on the skin it will feel soft or sort of cave into itself. Some say a fork will pierce the skin.
Continue reading “How to get your pumpkin ready for pie and seeds”
Another Shot of the Same Pumpkin and Watermelon (Sans Clown) by bill barber
It is pumpkin time again. Can one believe someone could grow a pumpkin that weighed more than a ton? A ton is 2,000 lbs. And this year’s, 2012, winning pumpkin weighed 2009 lbs. Check it out! I find this amazing.
If you want to grow gigantic pumpkins you have to start with pumpkins that grow to large size and then spend time encouraging the things to grow larger. For the secrets of growing enormous pumpkins, go here.
TheGardenLady wonders if the flesh of this gargantuan pumpkin is edible? Or do they feed it to the animals or just compost it after saving the seeds to use for next year’s gigantic pumpkin contest? (see here)
Pumpkin Pie by endless beauty
This is the season that I start dreaming of pumpkin pie.
To make my pie from canned pumpkin or to buy a fresh pumpkin, that is my question. I like them both. A friend says that because fresh pumpkins are so expensive and canned pumpkin is so cheap and so good, why go to the bother of making it from a fresh pumpkin. I agree that pumpkins are terribly pricey especially when they are sold by the pound. And you really get so little meat from the pumpkin- I read that a 4 lb sugar pumpkin will only give you about 1 1/2 cups of pumpkin- not even enough for the famous Libby’s pie recipe.
But I think it is fun to use fresh pumpkin at least once. I think it helps the farmer and if people will try various varieties, the farmer will have reason to plant different types. If only canned pie is used, the farmer will only farm for the factory and variety might be lost for the future. So at least once each year, I buy my fresh pumpkin.