DIY Thanksgiving Pantry: Homemade Pumpkin Purée

In my household, November — not October — is the month for all things pumpkin. In the weeks leading up to the comfort food feast of Thanksgiving, cravings for homemade pumpkin pie, pumpkin cheesecake, pumpkin cookies (and, of course, pumpkin spiced lattes, homemade or not) really kick in.

A few years ago, there was a pumpkin shortage in the U.S., and shelves that normally held the ubiquitous cans of Libby’s pumpkin purée were empty. All season long [gasp!].

That’s when I learned to make my own, from fresh pumpkins.

Pie pumpkins — or sugar pumpkins, as they’re sometimes called — are smaller and sweeter than Halloween’s huge Jack O’ Lantern field pumpkins (which have the added disadvantage of being rather grainy). Pie pumpkins are widely available at grocery stores and farmers’ markets, from September through the holidays.

I scored these two babies for $1 apiece at my local farmers’ market — a bargain in my area, as that’s cheaper than even a can of the store’s generic brand of purée (a pie pumpkin yields more purée than a commercial 15 ounce can). Plus, they were organically produced a mere 10 miles from my house (and I got to shake the hand of the farmer who grew them — win-win-win).

The best part: the purée itself is so simple to make. Pie pumpkins are much easier to handle than field pumpkins — a chef’s knife will make a clean, single cut through the squash (no “sawing” needed), and a serrated grapefruit spoon makes quick work of removing the pulp and seeds (no more difficult than a cantaloupe).

Roast the pumpkin in the oven, scrape out the flesh, and mash with a large fork or purée in a blender. Done. Use immediately in your recipe, or bag it up in one-cup quantities and freeze it (where it lasts for months and bakes up wonderfully after thawing).

My 2 3/4 pound pumpkin produced 3 cups of purée; a can of Libby’s contains only 1 3/4 cups.

Oh! And while you have all of those lovely pumpkin seeds piled on your cutting board, don’t forget that they make fabulous snacks. Clean them free of the stringy pumpkin pulp with a quick rinsing in a sieve, and roast them in the oven with your favorite seasonings. I tried this recipe for sweet sriracha pumpkin seeds this past weekend and came away completely, hopelessly addicted.