What to Cook Now: Pumpkin

From Asia to the Middle East, Mexico to the United States, cuisines the world over use pumpkin in a dizzying variety of ways. We've collected recipes and tips for Halloween celebrations and beyond.

Tips:

Use the Whole Pumpkin

For a festive touch, try serving soup in bowls made from hollowed-out pumpkins: Cut tops off several small pumpkins, remove seeds, and scrape inside walls clean. Wash thoroughly with warm water, place pumpkins on a baking sheet, and bake at 350°F for 20 to 30 minutes until hot (this will help keep the soup warm). Ladle soup into "bowls" and serve.

Save Larger Pumpkins for Carving

For cooking, look for small sugar pumpkins rather than the larger ones used for jack-o'-lanterns. The smaller varieties are sweeter, fleshier, and less watery.

Use Pure Pumpkin

For many baked goods, canned pumpkin purée is as good or better than fresh. Look for cans labeled "solid-pack" rather than "pumpkin pie filling" (which has other ingredients added).

Prep the Crust

When making cream or custard pies, it's helpful to partially bake the bottom crust before filling. This is called "blind baking" and helps ensure that moisture from the filling doesn't make the crust soggy. To blind-bake a crust, lightly prick the bottom all over with a fork (this will prevent air bubbles from forming). Line with foil and fill with pie weights or dried beans (these will keep the dough flat during baking). Bake until pale golden, remove weights, then fill and bake again, covering edges with foil to prevent overbrowning.

Select the Right Seeds

When a recipe calls for pumpkin seeds, generally they're the hulled green variety called pepitas that are used in Mexican cooking and available in many supermarkets and health food stores. The unhulled seeds obtained when carving a jack-o'-lantern can also be eaten-they're delicious toasted and sprinkled with salt. Simply separate from the pulp, rinse, drain, and roast.

Breads and Breakfasts

• Cranberry-Walnut Pumpkin Bread

• Ginger-Pumpkin Muffins

• Pumpkin-Walnut Flapjacks

• Pumpkin Waffles

• Pumpkin Doughnuts with Powdered Sugar Glaze and Spiced Sugar Doughnut Holes

• Spiced Pumpkin Loaves with Whipped Cream

Soups, Starters, and Sides

• Curried Pumpkin Bisque with Cheddar Cheese

• Silky-Coconut Pumpkin Soup (Keg Bouad Mak Fak Kham)

• Pumpkin and Fennel Pastries

• Warm Pumpkin Salad with Polenta and Candied Pumpkin Seeds

• Pumpkin Dumplings

• Pumpkin Cannelloni with Clams and Sage Brown Butter

• Fettuccine with Pumpkin, Shiitakes and Mascarpone

• Pan-Seared Scallops with Pumpkin Risotto

Sweets

• Pumpkin Chiffon Pie with Gingersnap Pecan Crust

• Pumpkin-Pecan Pie with Whiskey Butter Sauce

• Frozen Pumpkin Mousse with Walnut-Toffee Crunch

• Pumpkin Flan with Pumpkin Seed Praline

• Pumpkin Custard Profiteroles with Maple Caramel

• Bourbon Pumpkin Cheesecake

• Pumpkin Cake with Sage Ice Cream and Pumpkin Cherry Compote

Seeds

• Pollo en Pipian Verde

• Pumpkin-Seed-Crusted Trout

• Spicy Roasted Squash Soup with Pumpkin Seed Pesto

• Chicken in Green Pumpkin-Seed Sauce

• Spiced Pumpkin-Seed Flatbread

• Pumpkin Seed Brittle

Frozen Pumpkin Mousse with Walnut-Toffee Crunch

Bon Appétit | November 2004

Yield: Makes 4 servings

With no pastry crust to wrangle, these luscious parfaits of pumpkin mousse and cream are easier to make than pumpkin pie. Start making this dessert at least one day before you plan to serve it.

Ingredients

Crunch

• Vegetable oil

• 1 cup walnut pieces (about 4 ounces)

• 2/3 cup toffee bits (such as Skor; about 3 1/2 ounces)

• 4 teaspoons (packed) dark brown sugar

• 1/8 teaspoon salt

• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted

Mousse

• 2 cups chilled heavy whipping cream, divided

• 3/4 cup sugar

• 5 large egg yolks

• 1 1/4 cups canned pure pumpkin

• 2 tablespoons dark rum

• 1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract

• 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 1/8 teaspoon ground allspice

• 4 cinnamon sticks

Preparation

For crunch:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line rimmed baking sheet with foil; brush generously with vegetable oil. Toss nuts, toffee bits, sugar, and salt in medium bowl to blend. Add butter and toss to coat. Place mixture in center of prepared sheet; pat to single layer. Bake until toffee bits are soft (but retain shape), about 15 minutes. Cool crunch completely on sheet. Transfer to work surface; chop coarsely.

For mousse:
Whisk 3/4 cup whipping cream, sugar, and egg yolks in heavy medium saucepan to blend. Stir over medium-low heat until thickened to pudding consistency, about 10 minutes (do not boil). Transfer mixture to large bowl. Mix in pumpkin, rum, vanilla, ground cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, salt, and allspice. Refrigerate uncovered until cold, stirring occasionally, about 40 minutes.

Beat remaining 1 1/4 cups cream in another large bowl until cream holds peaks. Transfer 1/2 cup whipped cream to medium bowl for garnish; cover and chill. Fold remaining whipped cream into pumpkin mixture. Cover and refrigerate mousse at least 4 hours and up to 1 day.

In each of 4 medium (10-ounce) goblets, layer 1/3 cup mousse and generous tablespoon crunch. Repeat 2 more times (some crunch may be left). If necessary, whisk reserved 1/2 cup whipped cream to soft peaks. Pipe or drop dollop of cream onto mousse in each goblet. Cover; freeze overnight. (Can be made 2 days ahead. Keep frozen. Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes before serving.) Garnish with cinnamon sticks.

Photo by Pornchai Mittongtare

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