If you have carved a pumpkin this year, the last thing you should be doing with your leftovers is throwing them away. Pumpkin is an incredibly versatile ingredient. Here are some ideas of what you can do with those unwanted pieces of pumpkin.
The Flesh:
If you purée your pumpkin flesh, one delicious option is to combine it with some butter, minced garlic and heavy whipping cream on your hob to make the perfect pumpkin alfredo sauce for your noodles. Top it with parmesan to complete the taste profile.
If you have a little leftover pumpkin purée, you could make pumpkin-spiced chickpeas. This is a great option for snacks to take on the go and it can be made by combining a small amount of purée with maple syrup and pumpkin spices, before soaking some canned chickpeas in them for just a few minutes. Finally roast them in the oven at about 170°C for an hour.
If you don’t want to stretch yourself too far, roast pumpkin is very similar to roast butternut squash. Cut the flesh into square one inch pieces, season with salt, pepper and olive oil and cook in the oven for about 20 minutes at 220°C. For a more exciting flavour, season with either brown sugar and cumin or thyme beforehand.
The Seeds:
Bring your pumpkin to breakfast by adding some honey and pumpkin seeds to the top of your oatmeal or eat them on the go. Boil the cleaned pumpkin seeds with tea, salt and peppercorns for 20 minutes, remove, dry and then bake until crispy. Or spice things up with some sriracha pumpkin seeds by baking seeds with equal parts honey and sriracha until crispy. Eat them straight from the pan or let them sit for a while before storing to avoid stickiness (or burnt fingers).
The Whole Pumpkin:
For more advanced pumpkin connoisseurs, there are a number of things you can roast in a carved pumpkin to infuse flavours and end up with an impressive edible centrepiece. For a simple stuffed pumpkin, fully roast a pumpkin with cooked rice and sausage inside.