COOK THE ISSUE 2010

Cook the Issue 2010 - Pumpkin notes/tips

Oh what the heck, clean it up real good, dry it out and use it for fall decorations!

October 14th, 2010

I know that a couple of us have had issues with pumpkins being too hard to cut through and I really wanted to make tortelli with lightly browned butter and sage so I was determined not to waste the little pumpkins sitting on the counter (sugar pies).

I looked around for a quick method and found one that I could deal with. I simmered the pumpkin as instructed (http://www.ehow.com/how_5546495_cook-hard-skin-pumpkin.html ) for about 1 hour or until I could pierce the skin, this worked great, but I will miss the roasted flavor, or not as the pumpkin only roast for a brief period in my recipe.

The crafty part of me wants to do something with the remaining shell, but I have other things to do at the moment so I will leave that for another time, would make nice tea light holder?

posted in: Gallery

sbreckenridge writes: I find that the best way is to get a toehold by getting just the tip of your knife into it, then work your way around until there's enough of a crack that you can wedge your hands in there and split it open.
Our test kitchen also gives some tips on this, including the poke-holes-and-microwave method:
http://www.finecooking.com/articles/how-to-cut-big-squash.aspx
Posted: 9:44 am on October 15th

aliciajane writes: I just read somewhere that if you find squash too difficult to cut into, you can poke some holes into it, and then microwave it on high for one minute, and apparently this makes it easier to cut. Then you could still roast it. This is just a guess, but if it works for squash, maybe it will work for pumpkins as well? Posted: 7:46 am on October 15th

ICDOCEAN1 writes: Pie, that is hysterical, so let them sit in a basket with a fantastic bow, find a few more decorative little ones and show them off through thanksgiving, maybe changing from a Halloween ribbon to a Thanksgiving one, then find a suitable Christmas item to feature in the same basket with a pretty bow, works for me, make a real production of disposing, oh that sounds cold, of the pumpkins, leave them out for squirrels and they will, with help, magically vanish. No problem here, squirrels, foxes, possums, it all goes! Posted: 5:34 pm on October 14th

Texas_Foodie writes: Seems like I saw a recipe for spaghetti squash that said you could cut it in half and bake, or leave it whole and bake, then cut in half and scoop out the seeds. Of course, it takes longer to cook the whole squash. I would think that it would work for pumpkin or butternut squash as well.

Pielove - I don't think I can help you out with that problem :) Maybe get her a couple of those little baby pumpkins - that's what we did for my grandaughter. Posted: 2:45 pm on October 14th

liamsaunt writes: I ended up putting mine in the microwave to soften it enough to cut through it!

I also wanted to mention that I used my other hard as a rock pumpkin to make the "pumpkin stuffed with everything good" that's being featured on the main Fine Cooking site the other day. It was really tasty and looked great! I only had to manage to cut the top off to make that recipe. Posted: 1:56 pm on October 14th

Pielove writes: Great idea! Now, do you have any suggestions for getting my pumpkins away from my daughter, who has deemed them too cute to cook? Posted: 1:39 pm on October 14th