How To Make Pumpkin Puree

If you still have pumpkins laying around from your fall decor don't toss them out! You can turn them into delicious homemade pumpkin puree. It is a lot easier then you might think. 

After Halloween I was able to pick up 15 pie pumpkins for $1 each!! We used most of them for my son's birthday party as an activity, but the rest I am planning to cook. 

Also, one of the local plant nurseries was giving away the last of their pumpkins for FREE after Thanksgiving this year. I was tempted to stop by and get some more, but I knew I already had more then I could probably handle getting processed this year.

It is likely too late to find these deals now that it is December, but hopefully you will remember this tip for next year so you can stock up.

We decided this year to paint all our pumpkins instead of carving them so that we could use them later to make pumpkin puree. 

In the last few years it has been so irritating to me to carve the pumpkins, watch them rot and then either toss them in the trash or the compost. I felt like we were throwing away money. 

Start by putting your pumpkin in the sink so you can scrub all the paint off. 

To do this I got some steal wool soap pads and gloves and went to work. It came off easier then I expected, but it still required quite a bit of elbow grease. 

Please excuse my messy sink. I would have cleaned it before taking pictures, but I wasn't planning on doing this post. I decided to take pictures after I had already started. 

I have 4 kids and watch another 3 for several hours in the mornings. Who has time to scrub sinks.

For this next step there are differing opinions on how it should be done. Some people prefer to cut the pumpkins open and scoop seeds out before cooking. Others peel and chop theirs before cooking.

I have to admit that I am a bit lazy sometimes. I hate trying to cut through a rock hard squash. I prefer to make some slits in the pumpkin with a knife and then toss the whole thing in the oven. 

Make sure you put a cookie sheet underneath them on the next rack to catch drips. 

I usually cook mine at 350 degrees for about an hour. I then test with a knife to see if they are fully cooked. If you can easily slip the knife to the center of the pumpkin they are done. 

After the pumpkins have cooked and completely cooled I take a knife and cut the tops off and scoop out the seeds. 

If you have chickens make sure you save the seeds for them. They LOVE them. If not you can roast them and have a delicious snack for your family. 

After the guts are out I slice the pumpkins in four pieces and peel them.

If you have a Vitamix this next step will be a lot easier, but any good blender or food processor will do. Start adding slices to your blender and enough water to make a smooth puree. 

Keep doing this until you have finished all your pumpkins. 

After each blender full is finished I transfer it to a big bowl and keep going until everything is done. 

I have figured out that each can of pumpkin puree you can buy at the store has approximately 2 cups per can so I decided to use a 1 cup measuring spoon as a scoop. 

I scooped 2 cups of puree per bag and then laid them out flat in a pan to transfer to the freezer later. 

Here is a picture of the finished product. (Plus some bags of black beans I cooked that day) I forget how much is there, but from the 3 pumpkins I cooked that day I think there was around 8 or 9 bags full or 16-18 cups of pumpkin puree!!

When you stick the bags in the freezer make sure they are laying flat. It will make them a lot easier to store once they are frozen. 

I did the math...if I had bought 9 cans of organic pumpkin at the store I would have spent around $27. I think the pumpkins we bought were around $2.50 each. I cooked 2 pumpkins for a total of $7.50. That is nearly a $20 savings! 

I think that is definitely worth the extra time spent processing them. 

I wish I could say that I know of a safe way to can pumpkin, but due to their low acid content they are not safe to can. You are better off freezing the puree or leaving the pumpkins whole and stored in a cool, dry place until you are ready to use them. 

Now to go look up some yummy pumpkin recipes.