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Halloween comes soon: pumpkin from all varieties will invade our plates. Your taste buds will like it! Pumpkin, winter squash, chestnut squash are all cousins: they belong to various species of pumpkin. Their sweet and meting flesh announce a load of recipes to eat without moderation. As delicious as healthy, they are full of provitamin A (good for tan), antioxydant, minerals and various vitamins. Make sure to check this wonderful pumpkin custard recipe and this pumpkin recipes collection as well. Our pumpkin verrine recipe will delight your friends and this pumpkin and chorizo soup is simply… hum I let you discover it.
Pumpkin cooking
Friend of witches and Halloween, pumpkin is round and its flesh is a bit stringy. Its advantage is that it can be used in cooking and Halloween carving decoration. Be careful with your hands as pumpkin is a bit hard. Cut a hat, carve eyes and mouth, take out some flesh and here we go: put a little candle inside!
Before using the flesh for our recipes, it is separated from the seeds. These are very good for health, and once dried, they can be used in biscuits, cakes or healthy snacks.
The stringy flesh is excellent for pumpkin soup, as tajine, in quiche and chutney. Let’s not forget the famous Pumpkin pie that is traditionally served on Halloween.
Everything is good in the winter squash!
The winter squash flesh is sweeter and less stringy than the pumpkin. It can be cooked with the skin if it is organic. Before you prepare it, cut into quarters and remove seeds. Then it’s up to you: once peeled, you can cook the flesh into small cubes in a pan or cut in quarter in a pot. It is very good as a puree in soup and dessert. its seeds are also edible. To surprise your guests, serve them roasted and salted as an aperitif.
The delicate chestnut squash (Hokkaido squash or red Kuri squash)
The pumpkin stands out from its cousins by its delicate and inimitable flavor, very close to the chestnut. It is a true culinary treasure: it makes soufflés to die, it sublimes poultry, whether in small pie or mashed support. How do we prepare it? Just cut it and steam it for 20 minutes. When the meat is tender, let it cool. At this stage, you can peel if desired. The chestnut squash is cooked as sweet too: in cake and cheesecake. And if you have the courage and a oven, peel it and grate it raw: a small salad with vinegar or a revamped version of the carrot-cake.
