Pumpkins!

When my husband and I were first together he saw me scooping out a roasted pumpkin and putting the flesh in a blender.  "What are you doing?" he asked.   "Making pumpkin pie."  I replied.  He got a horrified look on his face and said, "Is that where pumpkin comes from?"  Of course I laughed.  He grew up in the city where pumpkin came from a can.   Sad really.  

How to Roast a Pumpkin:

I like to roast the pumpkin instead of boil it because it ends up being drier and thicker- less water content.  

Choose a nice ripe, fresh pie pumpkin.  It will be mostly orange and have a good weight for its size.  The grower will know which varieties are best for pies- not the big jack-o-lantern ones.  They are often called Sugar Pie or Little Sweetie and have more flesh inside that isn’t as stringy as the carving pumpkins. 

Break off the stem (handle) and cut the pumpkin in half vertically.  Scoop out the seeds and put them in a colander for later.   Place each half of the pumpkin cut side down on a cookie sheet and bake in the over at 350 F for 30-45 minutes.  It will be done when you flip it over and the flesh is tender and almost mushy when you poke it with a fork.   Leave them cut side up to cool and then scoop out the flesh into a container to use later.  It can freeze well, or keep in the fridge for a few days to use right away. Usually one pumpkin will give more than enough for at least one pie.

I like to put it in the blender before I use it in pie or muffins because I don’t like chunks.  A hand blender or a fork will work too. 

 

Roasted pumpkin

Pumpkin pie is my favourite!  It isn’t just for Thanksgiving.   I think it’s best at any time of day even for breakfast. 

Pumpkin Pie Filling

2 eggs

2 cups pumpkin puree

¾ cup br. Sugar

½ tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

½ tsp ground ginger

½ tsp cloves

½ tsp nutmeg

Blend until smooth.

1 2/3 cup milk  (use 2% at minimum and half and half maximum or a combination)

Blend until mixed well.  Taste for spices and adjust as needed.

Pour into pie shell and bake at 425 F for 10 min and then reduce to 350F for 30 – 45 minutes until pie is golden brown and a butter knife comes out clean when inserted into the centre.  

Cool and serve with plenty of whipped cream.   Store in the fridge because of the egg/milk content.

A pie crust review:

Pie Crust:

From Horn of the Moon Cookbook by Ginny Callan.

This crust only has butter so it’s perfect for vegetarians and other lovers of butter. 

Enough for one 10” pie top and bottom.  So for pumpkin pie enough for two bottoms because making only one pumpkin pie is a waste- how will you have enough for breakfast if you only make one? 

2 cups all purpose flour

2/3 cup cold butter

Dash of salt

 

Pumpkin Muffins  (just in case you get tired of pie)

4 eggs

1 cup brown sugar

¾ cup oil

1 ¾ cup pumpkin puree

Mix above ingredients together. 

Add:

1 cup whole wheat flour

2 cups all purpose flour

1 Tbsp cinnamon

2 tsp baking powder

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

Mix well and then stir in:

2 cups raisins or craisins

Fill muffin tins 2/3 full

Bake 375 F for 15-20 min until a toothpick comes out clean.

Makes 24 muffins.

Remember those pumpkin seeds in the colander? 

Rinse them under cool running water to get most of the bits off.  Spread on a cookie sheet and sprinkle with salt.  Bake in the oven at 350 F for 10 min at a time.  Stir in between to keep them from sticking and help them to brown evenly.   Test if they are done by tasting.   Don't eat too many at once as the fibre will give you the poops.

Eggstravaganza

 

Eggs are a super food.   Pretty much a crisis in our house if we run out.  

The most common eggs are white and brown-shelled eggs.  Identical in nutrient value, the only real difference between the two is the breed of hen they come from.  White shelled eggs typically are from hens with white feathers (usually White Leghorns in Alberta), while brown shelled eggs are typically from hens with brown feathers. Rode Island Reds.     

White Leghorn hen

Rhode Island Red hens

The real fun begins when you start to investigate heritage breed chickens.   These hens lay a rainbow of brown, beige, grey, blue, green, white, pink….so beautiful.   My kids and I had some hens for over a year, Barred Rocks, Ameraucanas  Cochins, Red Rock Crosses.  These hens were nothing like the sluggish white meat birds that I had experienced before.  They hopped, flew, scratched, jumped, ran, pecked and laid the most beautiful eggs.  Beautiful shells- a creamy bluish green from the Ameraucanas that when you cracked the egg were a Robin’s egg blue inside.  There could be a whole new line of paint colours named after the colour of hens’ eggs- but don’t tell Martha Stewart.   

Barred Rock chick

These eggs were beautiful inside too-  firm clear egg whites, vivid yellow yolk and amazing flavour.  Once you’ve tasted eggs like that where the hens eat grass and bugs in addition to their feed, then every other kind of egg is a disappointment.   

The year we had our hens, we had fried egg sandwiches for lunch, omelets for breakfast, quiche for supper, the fluffiest waffles, amazing meringues and during summer ….ice cream.   No need to “waste” an egg by frying it when you can make homemade ice cream with fresh local strawberries. 

Eggs at Farmers’ markets are often produced by small farmers who don’t have large enough production to need quota.   Egg production and marketing in Alberta in controlled on a quota system (so are milk and chicken)   Quota is a way to control the production and availability of a perishable product.  It generally helps farmers receive a decent price for their product as well.   But a farmer has to buy quota.   Small farmers with or without quota can sell at a farmers’ market, but the cartons need to be labelled as uninspected- which is the official word for "they can be different sizes".  They also need to be clean and labelled with the farm name and contact info.   Sometimes you will see eggs labelled as pullet eggs-  this means that these are young hens who just started laying and their eggs are a bit smaller than average- but they are so cute!  There are further classifications of eggs by the Egg Farmers of Alberta.   Of course keep in mind that they need to remain unbiased and support all their different types of egg producers.  You can find more info on the Egg Farmers website.    http://eggs.ab.ca/about-eggs/egg-types

How to tell if an egg is hard-cooked or raw:

Spin the egg on a flat surface- a cooked egg spins smoothly and raw egg spins unevenly because the liquid inside keeps spinning if you stop the egg. 

Eggs that refuse to peel:

The good news is that they’re really fresh.  The bad news is, it looks like your cat tried to peel them.  So let your eggs age if you’re going to hard-cook them.   You can also hard-cook eggs in salted water  to help them separate from their shells and peel them when they’re warm.   I’m not a gadget girl, but one of the best things I ever bought is one of those egg timers  it looks like a egg that’s flat on one side, that goes in the pot with the eggs and shows how done the inside is.    

My husband and kids can cook their own eggs to order now.   Because really, there’s nothing worse that wanting hard boiled eggs for salad and they are runny when you peel them. 

If you want to learn more about how eggs are produced in Alberta, I invite you to make friends with a farmer or maybe even look into having a few hens yourself.   But for initial info on the life of an egg there is this video from the Egg Farmers of Alberta. 

http://eggs.ca/egg-farming/journey-of-the-egg/down-on-the-farm

Perry Family Standard Fried Egg Sandwiches:

Great for breakfast, lunch, supper, elevensies, midnight snack and emergency measures.  

Melt some butter in a pan, when it sizzles break in two eggs per sandwich.   Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  When the white starts to cook, break the yolk so it spreads over the white and push each pair of eggs into a shape to match the bread you are using.   Cover and cook until firm but not super done.  Runny just gets too messy.   While the eggs are cooking get out any kind of bread.   If in doubt toast it, but either way is fine.  Spread one side with mustard and the other side with ketchup.  When the egg is done slap it on the bread and inhale.   Vary from this combination at your own peril- results are not guaranteed.