Kiss Fall Goodbye

This fall, my husband and I took a trip up to upstate nyc during the fall for some hiking and relaxation. We stopped off at a local farm stand and bought some delicious local produce, including a small sugar pumpkin. We used it as decor but my intent was to make something tasty with it at some point. But there it sat. And sat. And sat some more. Until I decided that my cut off was December and I had to use it before then.

I followed this recipe from Dorie Greenspan. I have to say, it completely blew my expectations and tasted amazing. Now I wish I had a few more pumpkins hiding somewhere so I could make it weekly! You could have this as a side dish (serves 4) or a main course (serves 2). We had ours with the rest of our Thanksgiving dinner, which paired perfectly. It also would be good with a nice simple green salad on the side.

Savory Stuffed Pumpkin

1 pumpkin, about 2 1/2 to 3 pounds

4 ounces stale bread, sliced thin, then cut into 1/2-inch chunks (**I used GF bread)

4 ounces cheese, (She recommends Gruyere, Swiss, Blue, or Cheddar; I used a combo of monteray jack and gouda which was excellent) cut into 1/2-inch chunks

2-4 cloves garlic (to taste), peeled, germ removed and coarsely chopped

About 1/3 cup heavy cream

Freshly grated nutmeg

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. I used a Dutch oven to bake the pumpkin in. Just add a little vegetable oil to the bottom of it so it doesn't stick too much. Try to use a nice looking one because then you can bring it all right to the table. You could also use a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone baking mat.

2. Using your pumpkin carving skills, cut a cap off the top of the pumpkin. (You know, just like how you carve a jack-o-lantern.) Clear away any seeds and strings from the cap and hold it aside while you scoop out the seeds and filaments inside the pumpkin. I saved the seeds and roasted them. Season the inside of the pumpkin with salt and pepper and put it on the sheet or in the Dutch oven.

3. In a separate bowl, toss the bread, cheese, garlic, salt, pepper and nutmeg together then add it to the pumpkin. The filling should come to near the top of the pumpkin (you can add more or less filling as needed.) Add the cream right to the pumpkin; it should come about 1/4 or 1/3 of the way up--no more than that. You don't want the ingredients to swim in cream, but you do want to get a feeling that they're moistened.

4. Put the cap back in place and bake the pumpkin for about 2 hours. Take the cap off the pumpkin the last 30 minutes so it gets nice and brown on top. The flesh should be tender and you should hear the insides bubbling away.

5. I brought the crock pot right to the table, used a sharp knife to cut the pumpkin into wedges. I think next time I will add a little precooked bacon and some sage. The garlic gets nice and mellow and wonderful.