When I am stressed and feeling a little out of my comfort zone I tend to bake... in excess. So with the onset of grad school looming over me (I start in 3 days) - and final grade reports due (in 4 days) - and kids getting cabin fever - and husband with actual fever - I decided to clean my kitchen.
Where I discovered a lovely pumpkin left over from halloween.
Because gourds generally last forever and are also a good source of vitamins, I decided I should bake something with it - I abandoned the kitchen cleaning and called everyone I could think of who might have made things from raw pumpkin. They hadn't.
Thank goodness for the internet!
It is actually very easy- First you but off the top of your pumpkin and quarter it onto a baking sheet.
Roast for about 45 min at 350 till soft when poked with a fork.
Peel the meat off of the skin till you have a bowl of goop. Then blend in your food processor or blender till smooth. (If you are doing it in a blender the internets suggest adding a tablespoon or so of water to smooth it out.) When this is complete you are able to use it in any recipe, as you would pumpkin puree.
I suggest pumpkin bread.
The only thing I would change about this recipe is I would add flax seeds- which I had on hand but blanked on when I was mixing up this recipe late at night. I think you could also add chocolate chips with wild success, but then you can't eat most of the loaf for breakfast the next morning. ;)
And because one baking project is not enough I got up the next morning and made some granola bars. I will not share the recipe here because they came out pretty dry and cake-y- I'll keep searching for a better recipe. (All suggestions are welcome - if you have a great recipe- please share)
