I have a new motto for fall decorating: you can never have too many pumpkins. I thought before that you should only get as many pumpkins as you can carve for Halloween, so probably one, unless you're a staffer for Martha Stewart or something. Now it seems like the more the merrier. And there are so many cute pumpkins you can get -- the white ghost pumpkins, the tiny mini pumpkins, adorable and ugly squashes (which aren't even really pumpkins), and these perfectly sized sugar pumpkins.
Yesterday, I was in a hurry to get the place finished being decorated for Halloween before the kids came by trick-or-treating, and none of my several pumpkins were carved. I had bought all these pumpkins because I had a housewarming party a couple of weeks before Halloween. I've discovered something: uncarved pumkins = fall/harvest. Carved pumpkins= Halloween. Uncarved pumpkins, outside, will last for weeks in the cool fall air. But as soon as you carve them, they quickly begin to fade. That's why I waited until the day Halloween to carve the pumpkins.
Since I was in a hurry, I thought we should do the smaller sugar pumpkins to save time. Boy was I in for a surprise. Apparently the sugar pumpkins are designed for making pies and have much thicker shells -- making them harder to cut than the larger, normal pumpkins. Who knew? So we saved no time there. But we did make a really cute kitty cat and a "Boo!" pumpkin. Note: you must make enough airholes to feed a candle if you're using a real candle, otherwise it will extingish! Learned this the hard way with the "Boo!" pumpkin.
What to do with those seeds? Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and meanwhile clean the seeds using a round sieve and running water. The pumpkin bits go to the bottom. Then dry the seeds with paper towels, and put in a bowl. Add 2 tbsp olive oil (per about two pumpkins worth of seeds), 1 heaping tsp cayenne pepper, 1/2 tsp cumin, and 1 tsp truffle salt. Stir with whisk until all seeds are coated. Pour the seeds on a cookie sheet -- you can use the whisk to spread them around. Roast seeds for about 27 minutes. Voila - spicy, delicious pumpkin seeds!
Yesterday, I was in a hurry to get the place finished being decorated for Halloween before the kids came by trick-or-treating, and none of my several pumpkins were carved. I had bought all these pumpkins because I had a housewarming party a couple of weeks before Halloween. I've discovered something: uncarved pumkins = fall/harvest. Carved pumpkins= Halloween. Uncarved pumpkins, outside, will last for weeks in the cool fall air. But as soon as you carve them, they quickly begin to fade. That's why I waited until the day Halloween to carve the pumpkins.
Since I was in a hurry, I thought we should do the smaller sugar pumpkins to save time. Boy was I in for a surprise. Apparently the sugar pumpkins are designed for making pies and have much thicker shells -- making them harder to cut than the larger, normal pumpkins. Who knew? So we saved no time there. But we did make a really cute kitty cat and a "Boo!" pumpkin. Note: you must make enough airholes to feed a candle if you're using a real candle, otherwise it will extingish! Learned this the hard way with the "Boo!" pumpkin.
What to do with those seeds? Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and meanwhile clean the seeds using a round sieve and running water. The pumpkin bits go to the bottom. Then dry the seeds with paper towels, and put in a bowl. Add 2 tbsp olive oil (per about two pumpkins worth of seeds), 1 heaping tsp cayenne pepper, 1/2 tsp cumin, and 1 tsp truffle salt. Stir with whisk until all seeds are coated. Pour the seeds on a cookie sheet -- you can use the whisk to spread them around. Roast seeds for about 27 minutes. Voila - spicy, delicious pumpkin seeds!
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