Pumpkin

A lovely big pumpkin like the one above can cause some issues. It's just too darn huge for one meal (unless you happen to have 20 at the table) and yet once it's cut, it has to be used up relatively quickly or it will go to waste.

Such a pumpkin has been forming the basis of our meals for a week now. It's not quite as tedious as it sounds but has required some ingenuity to keep the culinary interest going.

Again I've forgotten to take pictures of our workaday meals but the menu so far has included a Pumpkin and Sausage Pasta bake. Made with wholewheat rotini, the pasta in spiral shapes, and with some sausages gathered from Infinity foods on our trip to Brighton at the weekend, this was a comforting and easy start to a week of late suppers while the Mr. does some overtime at the salt mine.

Infinity may not be the cheapest wholefood store around but they do have a very good range of stuff and on our rare trips to the south coast I enjoy revisiting a place that was a considerable influence on my early veggie life.

Whilst the pasta baked slowly in the oven I also roasted a large chunk of the pumpkin, in its peel and cut side down, so that it became soft and luscious and a lot of moisture was removed from the rich orange flesh. Then on Tuesday we had Thai Pumpkin Stuffed Giant Mushrooms. These were so much nicer than I expected I should have taken more notice of the way I made them. Cooked pumpkin was involved and Thai spices and a little coconut milk but I'll have to make them again before I can guarantee a repeatable recipe.

Wednesday night we had a seitan and vegetable stew and then I attempted something I hoped would be a winner, a brown sugar and oatmeal crusted pumpkin and coconut pie for pudding. It tasted really good but stuck to the pan and couldn't be extracted to look like anything remotely delicious so that one is back to the chopping board, so to speak, and will have be reworked. Still, that used up the last of the oven roasted squash.

For Thursday it had to be sushi. We had maki rolls and inarizushi followed with some more pumpkin pie, this time with a hot chocolate sauce.

But there was still nearly half a pumpkin left. Although I could perhaps have made a Kolokithopita, a Greek savoury pumpkin pie made with filo pastry my enthusiasm for immediate pumpkin consumption has waned. Instead I decided to use up the leftovers in a sweet fragrant chutney that is good with faux meats and cheeses, great in salad sandwiches and makes an excellent addition to the relishes served with the poppadums on curry nights.

Chilli Fennel Pumpkin Conserve.

1kg fleshy pumpkin (after peeling and seeding)
500g white sugar
10g salt
2 or 3 dried red chillies
1-2 tsps fennel seeds

Chop the pumpkin into smallish pieces and put into a large bowl with the salt and sugar. Cover and leave to allow the juices to run. This will take a couple of hours but I usually leave it overnight.

Tip the pumpkin, its sugar and juice into a large non-reactive saucepan and heat gently to dissolve the sugar. When the sugar is dissolved completely add the chillies (to taste, but you're aiming for a gentle warmth not violent heat) and fennel seeds. Don't overdo the seeds either, this is a very subtle chutney.

Bring everything to boil and simmer away briskly until the liquid is reduced by about half. If you have a sugar thermometer aim for jam temperature (105C). The conserve won't set but the syrup will be nice and thick.

Pot into warm sterile jars (this will make about 2 jars, 340g to 450g sized) and seal immediately. Ready to eat in a week.




One whole big pumpkin used up, no waste!