Stuffed Pumpkin

One thing I always look forward to in the fall is pumpkins. When the spouse and I were newly married, we saw stuffed pumpkin in a cookbook. Intrigued, we tried it, and loved it. So, we make at least one every fall. Our CSA gave us a lovely little pumpkin in our last box. I use ground meat and rice, with onion, peppers, garlic, and herbs. The pumpkin itself is very nice with a little butter.

A great side benefit is the seeds. I rinse them thoroughly, making sure to separate them from any flesh. I spread the damp seeds on a cookie sheet, and sprinkle them with kosher salt and chili powder. I bake them in a 350 degree oven until crispy, about 10 minutes. they are a great snack.

Stuffed Pumpkin

1 10 inch diameter pumpkin
3 cups cooked rice
1 lb. ground turkey
1 medium white onion
2 medium yellow sweet peppers
1 tbsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried basil
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
salt and pepper to taste
2 eggs, lightly beaten

Cut off top, remove seeds and loose flesh. Save the seeds for later. Brown meat, when mostly done, add onion and cook a few minutes. Add peppers, herbs, garlic, salt, and pepper, cook until onion and peppers are tender. Let meat cool.

Mix rice, meat mixture, and egg. Stuff mixture into pumpkin. Excess stuffing can be placed in a loaf pan, and bake with the pumpkin for the last 1/2 hour.

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. Place pumpkin in a shallow baking dish with about 3/4 inch of water. Bake until pumpkin is tender, about 45 minutes to an hour.

Remove from oven, let rest five minutes before slicing to serve. One pumpkin this size feeds three.

Happy Eating!