Long Island Cheese Pumpkin (Cucurbita moschata)

When Antonia was a wee little girl and “making things from scratch” became a very high priority in my kitchen, San Francisco hippie woman that I was, I decided that November was Master Pie Crust month. And I made pie crusts over and over until I could make one half asleep in minutes. That little game I played with myself has served me for decades. And apparently this fall has been All About Pumpkins and I am learning as much as I can. And the most important discovery I have made, as someone who has wanted the perfect Pumpkin Soup Recipe for years, is that the secret is not the recipe. The secret is the kind of pumpkin. Who knew? And what I have learned through all these weeks of pumpkin and winter squash learning and sharing is that the very best pumpkin to use for pumpkin soup bears the unlikely name Long Island Cheese Pumpkin, an heirloom variety, which supposedly is/was commonly grown on Long Island. (Would love to hear the stories, if you know them!) As I don’t recall ever seeing a Long Island Cheese Pumpkin in any kind of store, ever, nor had I ever heard of one before this summer, I’m not too sure how likely it will be that you can find one, other than at your local farmer’s markets. You may have to grow one. I have poked around and I think you will have no trouble finding the heirloom seeds. I’m partial to all things Baker Creek Seed Company, so here’s their link. Plan early! And, boy, are you gonna be glad!

So, first I’m going to post a refresher course on how to easily make pumpkin puree, and then I’m going to show you how to make fabulous pumpkin soup in, oh, say, five minutes. Really.

First you grab an apple corer and poke two holes in the top of your pumpkin. Place in a large pot of water. Let the water come to a soft boil and cook until a fork is readily able to pierce your pumpkin. Then, flip it so the top is also cooked thoroughly. (This is the only tricky part of this process. You might ask someone to hold the pot in place while you turn over the pumpkin.) This won’t take long.

Once the pumpkin is cooked, pour off the water. Then simply cut it across twice. [Please excuse this slightly out of focus pic! I promise to replace next time I make this, which will be soon!] Let it cool.

Once the pumpkin is cool, peel off the skin, which you will discover is very intact and readily peels off. It’s not like what you are expecting. And recycle the seeds. This is what you will have. Look at this color!! I think this is Food at Its Best. It just screams I Am So Good For You! And it is utterly delicious.

Then put the flesh in batches into your food processer and puree. Look at this rich spun gold! I’m rather astounded this is the color of what emerges inside a Long Island Cheese Pumpkin. But that’s what you get! #LOVE

Now. What I do is measure out the puree into portions of 2 cups and freeze what I’m not going to yet use. I feel fantastic knowing I have this on hand in my freezer for winter, for soups and pies and breads. I set aside two cups for my easy soup recipe.

I don’t know about you, but I am so busy that finding time to cook is a bit of an effort sometimes. I really like having certain things prepared and on hand at any given moment. On that list are fresh scones in the freezer, cold green tea, rice for the doggies, some form of salad all made up (e.g., cole slaw or grated dressed beets) and, hopefully, at this time of year, a yummy soup. So this fits the bill.

I poured some olive oil in a heavy pan, and sauteed half an onion and two cloves of garlic I had processed beforehand in the Cuisinart. I made a point of cooking the onion slowly and thoroughly. Then I added two cups of free range chicken broth. (I cheated because this is an Easy Recipe and “easy” in this case means chicken broth from the health food store.) I let that heat up a bit, and then poured in the two cups of pumpkin puree. Like this.

I added salt and white pepper to taste. And then I added a cup of cream. And I served this delicious, simple, nutritious soup with sour dough bread and a glass of green tea. What a fantastic cold weather luncheon! This soup would also make a wonderful starter course for Thanksgiving or Christmas that would not require much time! I think I’d add a dollop of sour cream or perhaps some chopped parsley or scallions for the holidays before serving, wouldn’t you?

And I will store the balance of the soup knowing There Is Soup in the frig, a comforting thought. You know? Yes, you do. 🙂

Love and kitchen blessings,
Kathryn xoxoxo

Book News: Western North Carolina Woman has just published an excerpt from Plant Whatever Brings You Joy here. If you visiting this blog from the beautiful NC mountains, you might appreciate knowing that Malaprop’s has copies of my book! Also, a wonderful review of Plant Whatever Brings You Joy has just been published on Examiner.com.
As you are planning Christmas giving, remember that you may order copies of Plant Whatever Brings You Joy directly from Estrella Catarina, and that shipping is free, as is giftwrapping!

Posted on November 5th, 2012 by Kathryn
Filed under: Plants | 18 Comments »

Happiest fall greetings and welcome to Plant Whatever Brings You Joy (and a fresh new look!).

As promised I’m going to continue sharing the wealth of information I gathered from Anne, whom I met at the farmer’s market, who has a wonderful organic farm in Mendocino County. I was just astounded that she knows so much about pumpkins and squashes. Her love for these vegetables and the magic they hold is palpable!

In my last post I focused on the various pumpkins I learned about. This post is devoted to some of the abundant winter squashes available to us only at this precious time of year. I particularly love that these vegetables have been woven so beautifully into the tapestry of our winter holidays. They also continue to offer inspiration for a variety of winter soups that nurture us as the days grow longer and the nights grow colder.

Baby Blue Hubbard Squash (Cucurbita maxima)

This is a smaller version of a standard Blue Hubbard, producing fruits about 5-7 pounds. It has a smooth, gray-blue skin and a sweeter flesh than the standard Blue Hubbard. Reputedly this is the preferred squash of the cucumber beetle, so one might consider growing (off to one side??) to distract the little buggers from your other squashes! (Just sayin’…)

Kabocha (Japanese: カボチャ, 南瓜)

Kabocha squash received a lot of attention on Plant Whatever Brings You Joy, in my Squasharama post written nearly four years ago (!) and I refer you back to it for more extended information about kabocha, including a baked custard recipe. It has an exceptional naturally sweet flavor, even sweeter than butternut squash. It is similar in texture and flavor to a pumpkin and a sweet potato combined. I’m looking forward to baking the one I just purchased. It’s a very substantial squash.

Crown Pumpkin

I actually included the Crown Pumpkin in my recent pumpkin post, but I’m going to include again here, as it actually is a winter squash. Crown Pumpkin is a delicious winter squash with a hard blue-grey skin and rich orange flesh.

The Cucurbita family houses the pumpkin, the gourd and the squash, and has sub-categories called the Cucurbita moschata, Cucurbita maxima and the Cucurbita pepo.Pumpkins are usually recognized as being the pepo. The stems are woody and the skin is hard and orange. The maxima species is slightly different from the pepo species in that it is less hardy when compared to a Jack-o-Lantern.

Burgess Buttercup

Burgess Buttercup produces smallish 3-5 pound dark green fruits with orange flesh, which is fiberless. The flavor is reminiscent of sweet potato. It can be baked or steamed, then combined with butter and fresh herbs. It stores well.

Blacktail Mountain Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus)

Yes, just as watermelon season was closing, there was Anne selling this intriguing Blacktail Mountain watermelon. I couldn’t not give it a try, right? The fruit is solid dark green and has an orange-red flesh. Ann says the fruits are generally 6-10 poinds and 8″ across. Vines reach 10 feet. Once harvested it will keep up to two months. Good to know.

I hope you have enjoyed the pumpkin/squash journey. Thank you for taking it with me. As winter approaches and you begin planning your next garden, I hope you will be inspired to try some of the veggies I have introduced.

Thank you for the visit!

Love and garden blessings,
Kathryn xoxo

Book News: OdeWire has just published another excerpt from Plant Whatever Brings You Joy, the chapter/lesson titles “Invest in Trees.” It’s a perfect story for October. And if you have not yet visited the book trailer for Plant Whatever Brings You Joy, I invite you to take a peek!

Posted on October 9th, 2012 by Kathryn
Filed under: Plants | 10 Comments »