Whole Roasted Pumpkin "Pie"
Recipe by Local Roots recipe contributor, Chef Casey Corn @casey_corn
I love whole roasted vegetables, and squash in particular, so when I received these beautiful sugar pumpkins from Local Roots, I thought I'd try to pie-ify the pumpkins! They turned out freaking AMAZING and I have a feeling these might replace some actual pies this year! The recipe makes a good amount of pumpkin spice blend, and you won't need all of it for this dish, so keep it for all your pumpkin spice needs!
Ingredients:
for the pumpkin spice:
4 tsp ground cinnamon
1½ tsp ground ginger
½ tsp ground nutmeg
¼ tsp ground allspice
¼ tsp ground cloves
¼ tsp ground cardamom
for the pie:
1 ea sugar pumpkin
3 Tbs unsalted butter
2 Tbs light brown sugar
pinch salt
for the crumble topping:
1 c mixed nuts, roughly chopped
½ c shortbread, broken into bite-size pieces
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 450F.
2. In a small bowl, combine all ingredients for the pumpkin spice. Mix well, and place in an airtight container. You won’t need all of it for this recipe.
3. Remove the stem from the pumpkin by cutting around it at an angle, just like you would for a jack o lantern. Scoop out the seeds and scrape along the inside of the pumpkin to remove any fibrous strings. Line a baking sheet with foil and place the pumpkin on top.
4. In a small pot, combine the butter with the brown sugar, salt, and 1½ tablespoons of pumpkin spice. Place over low heat, and stir until the sugar has dissolved into the butter. Turn the heat off.
5. Use a pastry brush to slather the inside and outside of the pumpkin with about half of the sweet spiced butter, then place the pumpkin in the center of the oven. Roast in 15 minute increments, taking the pumpkin out of the oven to brush again with the liquid collecting inside the pumpkin. The pumpkin should roast about 45 minutes, until you can pierce the skin with a knife (side note: the skin will still be pretty tough and you might not want to eat it, but the flesh will be perfect!).
6. Let the pumpkin cool a little bit, and in the meantime, line another baking sheet with foil or parchment paper. Spread the nuts evenly over the baking sheet, and then drizzle with the remaining sweet spiced butter mixture. Toss to combine, then place in the oven for about 5 minutes to begin toasting.
7. Carefully pour the liquid inside the pumpkin into a small bowl (use tongs…the toughness of the skin will help a lot here!) and toss the shortbread pieces until they soak up most of the liquid. Add the shortbread pieces to the sheet tray with the nuts, tossing to combine, then roast another 5 minutes until all nuts and shortbread are golden. Remove from the oven.
8. Cut the pumpkin into wedges, then top with the crumble and whupped cream. Serve warm or cold!
Recipe by Local Roots Recipe Creator, Chef Casey Corn @casey_corn
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