Pumpkins are not just for Halloween

Call me a killjoy, if it was Christmas you could call me Ba Humbug, but I really dislike the waste of  food at Halloween. I saw it when my own kids were young, bags of sweets and fruit from trick or treating, and of course the huge numbers of pumpkins that are wasted. Okay, that’s the lecture over so let’s look at loving and eating pumpkins this year.

I was delighted to find a great big pumpkin in my veg bag delivery this week and even more delighted to find that it also included a recipe for spicy pumpkin soup. My bag comes from Bellfield Organics and they’re always happy for me to include the recipe in blog posts. I’m on a mission this month to think outside the pumpkin. It’s not just for Halloween, it’s for eating. Make soup, use it it casseroles, roast it, make it cakes, whatever you do, cook pumpkin and eat it.

This gorgeous pumpkin was in my organic veg bag this week

This was quite a big pumpkin and I still have more than half leftover. The pumpkin seeds can also be used so don’t thrown them away. I’ll be roasting them in oil and using in salads and snacks.

Don’t throw the seeds away, roast and use in salads or as snacks.

This is the first of several recipes I’ll be posting this month and I hope it encourages you to be adventurous with pumpkins while they are in season.

Warming and spicy pumpkin soup