After visiting several supermarkets in search of pumpkin puree only to find they were sold out, I decided to take matters into my own hands. Amy’s Cooking Adventure had instructions on how to make my own puree using pie pumpkins so I tried it out. To test out my finished product (and as a nice pat on the back) I made pumpkin pie milkshakes to celebrate.
To make pumpkin puree, you need to purchase pie pumpkins. They are different than normal carving pumpkins, which have less flesh, making them perfect for carving. Pie pumpkins are usually much smaller and labels as either pie pumpkins or sweet pumpkins. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking pan with tin foil.
Take your pie pumpkin and cut off the top.
Slice the pumpkin in half and scoop out the insides and all the seeds.
Reserve the seeds so that you can toast them later.
Place pumpkins cut side down on the baking sheet and add 1-2 cups water around the pumpkins.
Bake for 60 to 90 minutes or until fork tender. (Mine took about 75 minutes).
Allow the pumpkins to cool down until they are cool enough to touch. Scoop the flesh out of the pumpkins into a food processor and blend until smooth.
Scoop the puree into a colander lined with a paper towel and let rest for an hour to remove excess water.
You now have pumpkin puree! You can freeze this or refrigerate it up to 5 days. I have never been so pleased with the result of my prep work. Look at all that pumpkin! Thanks Amy for posting this, what a great idea!
Now to test it out: Pumpkin Pie Milkshakes.
Ingredients:
- 2 cups vanilla ice cream
- 1 cup skim milk
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon allspice
- 1/4 teaspoon ginger
Add all ingredients to a blender and blend until combined. If desired, top with whipped cream. Enjoy.
Ah. Perfect! The pumpkin flavor is highlighted with the spices. It tastes like pumpkin pie in a glass!
Oh my goodness!! I LOVE this! You are so brave and talented! haha and funny because hubby and I were JUST talking about getting a pumpkin and diving in! Love this!!
I was just thinking about making my own puree since I have one can left and am not sure my store will have any (and if they do it’s likely the $3/can organic variety). Thanks for posting this! 🙂
I love this post!! It’s so helpful! I’m saving this one!
Great post!! I am definitely using that to do my pies this year for turkey day!
This looks delicious! Since everyone has mentioned difficulty finding pumpkin puree – when I saw them at the store…I grabbed 3 cans!
That milkshake looks absolutely delicious. Thanks for the instructions for roasting a pumpkin. I purchased one a the local farmers market to roast. Now I’m not sure I bought the right kind. I’ll keep my fingers crossed. Thank you!
Sounds great! Thanks for the pumpkin how-to.
Oh I gotta try this!!! I have homemade vanilla ice cream that must be used soon….off to the pumpkin patch. Thanks for sharing
Yeah! Thanks for the recipe! My store ad some, so I bought a couple cans, but I would guess they aren’t going to last long.
Good for you for making your own! I’ve been seeing pumpkins aplenty, but hardly any canned puree.
Good for you for making your own! I’ve been seeing pumpkins aplenty, but hardly any canned puree.
Just wanted to let you know that I am featuring your pumpkin recipe on my post about “Top 10 Pumpkin Recipes to Try.”
Please feel free to drop by and check it out and add a button or link to your post if you want!
Ok that’s a heck of a lot easier than I thought. I’m putting whole pumpkins on my grocery list!
what a great idea!!! I’ve never made my own!!
OMG!!! Wow! I definitely will be saving this to try. Thanks so much too for the tips on how to make my own puree!