Pumpkin

If you’re carving pumpkins, save everything! Eat it all.

Pumpkin is my all-time favorite food. When the libby’s shortage happened and suddenly canned pumpkin was seasonal, I was wicked upset and had to completely overhaul my meal plan. You can be sure I am hoarding now.

I like pumpkin in baking (pumpkin-based foods and using it instead of fat, comparable to apple sauce but obviously with a very different texture and flavor), as a base of random concoctions, in oatmeal, spread on bread, in a shake, plain out of the can, or, my favorite, in pumpkin protein pancakes (the most basic recipe is pumpkin, protein powder (optional), cottage cheese, oats, and eggbeaters).

Prior to the shortage, my pumpkin berry muffins, which I will share below, were my daily post workout carb source.

Pumpkin is a great fruit. It’s a squash that is full of nutrients like beta-carotene, fiber, beta-cryptoxanthin, Alpha-carotene, vitamin c, vitamin e, potassium, magnesium, and pantothenic acid. It promotes healthy vision, boosts immunity, helps prevent heart disease, high blood pressure and various cancers, including prostate, and even might help decrease lung cancer in smokers. Additionally, there was a study at East China Normal University that studied type 1 diabetic rats and found that one of its compounds might be helpful for those who are pre-diabetic or already have diabetes. Pumpkin is also known to have anti-aging properties.

As a side note, because it’s low calorie and filled with fiber, my vet wanted my overweight cat to eat it. He wasn’t a fan.

My protein berry muffins are just a random creation I came up with, and you might prefer to make more that are smaller (I use the big muffin tins but they don’t fill them, hence no real muffin top) or try them as a loaf or cookies. Have fun with it and make it your own.

3/4 c toasted oat bran

1 1/4 c wheat bran

15 oz can of pumpkin (pure pumpkin, not pumpkin pie mix)

3/4 c eggbeaters

1 c very cherry blend

baking soda

baking powder

ginger

cinnamon

pumpkin pie spice

1 container baby food fruit (I usually use apple blueberry)

We are also lucky enough to have a real recipe, courtesy chef Don Doward. He makes a healthy, crustless, pumpkin pie recipe, that contains only a few simple, whole ingredients. And don’t you love that he uses a real pumpkin and not the canned stuff, like I do?

1 Medium Pumpkin

3 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive oil

1 Tablespoon Cinnamon

4 Tablespoons powered stevia

Pre heat oven to 400 degrees.  Cut and clean pumpkin into wedges. Place on a cookie sheet and rub with oil. Sprinkle cinnamon and stevia. Rub this mixture into the pumpkin wedges. Bake 45 – 50 mins until a fork goes into pumpkin easily.

Serve

While I did not talk about the seeds, trust me, you want to eat them for even more health benefits. Or, better yet, do your own research.

Pumpkin and pumpkin seeds and delish and good for you. Win, win.

randi morse, randi.morse@gmail.com, newton, ma