Right off the bat, I have to give credit to Dorie Greenspan for this recipe and general idea. In her book, Around My French Table, she published a recipe called called Pumpkin Stuffed with Everything Good that she got from a friend's sister who lives just outside Lyon, France. And boy, is it ever good! Catherine told her, "I hope you will put the recipe to good use, knowing that it's destined to evolve . . . and maybe even be improved." Because she also suggests in her Bonne Idee in the sidebar that you can stuff it with just about anything, I call my stuffed pumpkin Pumpkin Stuffed with ANYTHING. Keep reading for more ideas on stuffing options!
The recipe is so good that it has been republished many places, including Epicurious, thekitchn, Martha Stewart, and my favorite because you can listen to Dorie's voice, NPR.
What kind of pumpkin should you use?
I'm sure you can imagine that you wouldn't use a Jack O'Lantern pumpkin for this. They are way too large and certainly not as palatable as a smaller version.
This is a Sugar Pie Pumpkin and yes, also the kind you can puree for pumpkin pie if you choose to not use a canned variety. It is small, sweet, and nutty when roasted.
Tip for cutting the top off:
It helps if you angle your knife in at a 45-degree angle since that is how the pumpkin is shaped. You kind of have to do short 1-2-inch cuts because the pumpkin is so hard that it makes it difficult to keep moving the knife in a fluid motion. I then use my knife to cut the strings and seeds off of the top.
And then ... you have to get in to your elbows to pull out all the seeds and strings. Well, not really since this is a small pumpkin! I find using a large, sturdy serving spoon to scrape at the inside helps a lot.
What do you stuff the Pumpkin Stuffed with ANYTHING with?
Well ... anything! This one has sourdough bread cubes, bacon, gruyere, garlic, chives, and thyme ... it's Dorie's original.
More stuffing option ideas:
- rice instead of bread (increase the amount of liquid and allow space for the rice to expand)
- lentils, rice, onions, thyme
- sausage or ground beef instead of bacon
- cubes of ham
- add blanched and chopped greens, or green peas
- beans, rice, chorizo, some Mexican spices (oregano, paprika, chili powder)
- white beans, greens, Italian sausage
- Make a sweet version kind of like bread pudding with raisins, apples, a little maple syrup, nuts, some ginger maybe?
- You name it! Anything! What's your fancy?
- How about using an acorn squash instead? Or a half-spaghetti squash?
Just before you put it in the oven pour some cream over the filling. Doesn't need much, really, just a touch. Put the pumpkin lid on and slip it into the oven for a couple of hours. Test for doneness by sticking a paring knife through. Be sure it goes through easily all the way.
How to serve
Well, this is totally up to what you feel like doing! Again ... "anything" goes with this "recipe".
You can cut slices from the pumpkin and serve them with a bit of the stuffing tucked beside it as shown in the first photo. You can scrape the pumpkin from the skin and stir it all together with the stuffing and serve it like a side dish, dipping spoons full on to plates next to roast chicken, for example.
Once you taste this luscious Autumn dish, you'll know what I mean by "IT'S.DELICIOUS!"
Recipe
Pumpkin Stuffed with ANYTHING
Ingredients
- 1 sugar pie pumpkin about 3 pounds
- ¼ pound bread cut in to cubes
- ¼ pound cheese I like Gruyere, but you can use Emmenthal, or cheddar or a mixture.
- 2 cloves garlic chopped small
- 4 strips cooked bacon cut into small pieces
- ¼ cup fresh chives snipped
- 1 Tablespoon fresh thyme
- ⅓ cup heavy cream
- salt and pepper for seasoning
- pinch of nutmeg
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or use a smaller Dutch oven or pottery bowl that fits the pumpkin nicely. It will help it hold its shape. I like to also put parchment paper in the bottom of either of these dishes as well.
- Using a sharp, sturdy knife, cut the top off of the pumpkin. It's helpful to angle your knife at 45°. Pull the top off and cut away the seeds and strings that are attached. Set the top aside and pull all of the seeds and strings from inside. A large serving spoon is sometimes helpful to scrape. When it is all cleaned out, season the inside with salt and pepper.
- Mix all of the other ingredients together except for the cream. Put them in the pumpkin.
- Mix the cream with salt, pepper, and nutmeg and pour it into the pumpkin.
- Put the cap back on the pumpkin and bake for about 2 hours, depending on the size of the pumpkin. Check it after about 90 minutes by inserting a knife through the outside. It should be able to go through easily with no resistance.
- Dorie says she likes to take the cap off during the last 20 minutes so that the liquid can bake away and the top can brown a little.
- You can serve it straight from the baking dish or transfer it very carefully to a platter. Cut it into slices with stuffing served alongside or scrape the pumpkin from the skin and mix it all together with the stuffing before dishing it out of the skin. Either way you do it will be tasty!
Notes
- rice instead of bread (increase the amount of liquid and allow space for the rice to expand)
- lentils, rice, onions, thyme
- sausage or ground beef instead of bacon
- cubes of ham
- add blanched and chopped greens, or green peas
- beans, rice, chorizo, some Mexican spices (oregano, paprika, chili powder)
- white beans, greens, Italian sausage
- Make a sweet version kind of like bread pudding with raisins, apples, a little maple syrup, nuts, some ginger maybe?
- You name it! Anything! What's your fancy?
- How about using an acorn squash instead? Or a half-spaghetti squash?
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