One of the first things I did this morning was to make pumpkin bread. I really love baked goods and I like them even better when they taste great and happen to be low fat! You can find the recipe HERE. This is one I make regularly and it is consistently good.
Today I used fresh pumpkin though instead of canned. I had a few small pumpkins around from some of our different visits to pumpkin farms and I'd read in one of my slow cooker cookbooks* about steaming them in the crock pot......so I gave it a try. It turned out great! Below are a few simple steps to making your own fresh pumpkin.
Wash your pumpkin(s) and place in the crock pot with just enough water in the bottom so your pumpkins won't burn. I added approximately 1/4 cup. Check on them periodically and add more hot water if necessary. Steam until you can easily insert a fork into pumpkin to test. (I let mine cook on low for about 4.5 hours).
Once cooked to your satisfaction, remove from the crock pot and slice down the middle. Scoop out all the yucky stuff (seeds and stringy gook) and discard. Scoop out the meat of the pumpkin and put in a food processor. Discard the hard shell (or put in your compost pile if you have one).
Process until smooth...
I packaged mine in Ziploc freezer bags and labeled them. The two little pumpkins I did made 3 cups. Enough for a pie and a pumpkin bread. Today was the pumpkin bread day!
Joy in fall treats! Happy Friday!
HDP
*Note: You can read more about steaming pumpkins and squash in Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Cookbook; page 130-131.
