Five Great Pumpkin Recipes for Halloween

Well, you don't have to eat pumpkin, but what a waste of a delicious, healthy and season vegetable if you don't! At Halloween, when we make our pumpkin lanterns, we end up with a whole lot of fabulous pumpkin flesh and pumpkin seeds that you can make into wonderful pumpkin treats..

We love to celebrate and we love to cook. Here are five excellent ways to cook all that scooped-out pulp and left over pumpkins!

Here's how to make a delicious pumpkin soup with cheese, a real warmer for those chilly October nights, roast pumpkin - so simple you hardly need me to tell you about it, a couple of recipes from my Granny's cook book and a Turkish dessert for something a little bit different. Enjoy.

Not only are pumpkins great fun for all the family at Halloween, they are also a healthy 'super food'. Why not find out more about the health benefits of pumpkins as well as a whole host of tasty ways to cook them. This recipe book will open up a whole new cuisine for you that will make cooking just that little bit more interesting.

Ingredients

* 1 kg pumpkin, chopped

* 1 medium onion, sliced

* 1.5 litres stock

* 50 g butter

* 200 g Parmesan cheese

* Half a small chilli, de-seeded and chopped finely

* Salt and pepper

Method

Melt the butter in a saucepan, and saut the sliced onion until soft. Add the pumpkin cubes and fry until soft. Add the cheese to the pan with the chopped chilli and when the cheese has melted, add the stock a little at a time. Season with pepper and salt to taste.

Cover the pan and simmer gently for about ten minutes or until the pumpkin is well cooked and soft, then blend or puree until the mixture is smooth.

Don't forget to save all the seeds. You can clean and toast them, toss them in a little salt and serve as a nibble, or incorporate into salads for a little extra crunch. If you are able to grow your own pumpkins, you can use these seeds next year.

Sweet and crunchy

This recipe couldn't be easier. Peel and chop the pumpkin into chunky crescent shapes. Fry these lightly in a pan with butter. Sprinkle with a little sugar and simmer until soft.

Serve with pine kernels, chopped nuts or something similar and finish off with ice-cream, creme fraiche, whipped cream or any other topping you fancy.

This recipe is taken from my Granny's jam making book.

Ingredients

* 1.5 kg pumpkin peeled and diced

* 1.5 kg sugar (I use a bit less sugar than the recipes, perhaps 1 kg)

* Pulp and grated rind of three oranges and one lemon

Method

Boil the pumpkin until tender, drain and mash it thoroughly. Add the orange and lemon pulp and rind then bring to the boil. Add the sugar and stir until dissolved then boil for about 20 minutes until thick.

Roasting pumpkin couldn't be easier. Cut your pumpkin into crescent shaped slices 1 inch / 2.5 cm thick. No need to peel. Toss in a bit of olive oil, season, spread out in a baking tray and bake in a hot oven (425F/225C or gas mark 7), until caramelised and soft - about 20 minutes. You can also add chopped rosemary or oragano when you toss in oil, or grated orange or lemon rind. You can sprinkle with the orange rind when you serve it. I love to crush whole pepper corns and sprinkle this onto the pumpkin for a hot and spicy touch.

Serve as a vegetable. Delicious.

Ingredients

* 500 g pumkin puree

* 250 g shortcrust pastry

* 300ml cream

* 3 eggs

* 1 tablespoon grated orange or lemon peel

* 150g sugar

* pinch of salt

* 1 teaspoon ground chinger

* Half teaspoon of ground cinnamon. You can also add a pinch of ground cloves.

Method

Cut the peeled pumpkin flesh into chunks and boil until tender. Drain and mash. Line a 10 inch flan case with the pastry and blind bake in the oven at 400F, 200C or gas mark 6 until just tjust firm. Beat the cream with the eggs, sugar, lemon peel spices and salt, put into the case and bake until set and brown. Serve with whipped cream and garnish with walnut halves or sugard flowers.

Why don't you grow your own pumpkins for Halloween?

I'm such a great fan of pumpkins that I like to grow my own, so save those seeds and get digging. How to Grow Pumpkins for Halloween

It's thrifty but most of all it's fun to grow your own pumpkins for Halloween treats. First you get all the fun of watching your pumpkin grow, second you get fresh, organic pumpkins in many different colours, shapes and sizes, thirdly you get delicious pumpkin flesh to make soups, stews, pies and so much more, fourthly you get MORE seeds to grow for next year, and seeds to toast for nibbles and FINALLY you get a gorgeous pumpkin to make into a soup tureen or a jack-o-lantern for Halloween.