I remember the first time my mom made a pumpkin pie with freshly-made puree. The flavor was so much better than canned pumpkin. I was hooked.
Now I have to make a pumpkin pie each year with fresh pumpkin puree. It’s just something that needs to be done. If you have never tasted a pie made with non-canned pumpkin, you are missing out big time.
Let me show you how to make it yourself!
Begin by cutting off the stem. It will just get in your way.
Slice the pumpkin in half. If you lack the strength to hack open a pumpkin, you can make it a lot easier by tapping on the back of your knife with a rubber hammer (this was my husband’s idea). Make sure to keep your fingers out of the way of your knife!
Scoop out the seeds and stringy bits of the pumpkin. Reserve the seeds for roasting later.
Slice the pumpkin into quarters or eighths. For some reason I always want to do eighths. Eighths is a weird word to spell and say. Anyways.
Roast the pumpkin in a 350 degree oven for an hour or so, or until the pumpkin feels tender when you poke it with a fork. Let the squash cool a bit and then slice off the skin.
Puree in a food processor
. You may need to add a bit of water if your pumpkin is dry.
. You may need to add a bit of water if your pumpkin is dry.
Store in the refrigerator for about a week, or in the freezer for several months.
Homemade Pumpkin Puree
adapted from Pioneer Woman’s method | PRINT
Ingredients:
- 1 pie pumpkin
- water, if needed
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Slice off the stem of your pumpkin. Cut the pumpkin in half and scoop out the seeds and stringy parts. Quarter the pumpkin. Place on a baking sheet
.
.Bake in preheated oven for about an hour or so, or until the pumpkin is tender when poked with a fork.
Cool for a bit and then slice off the skin. Place in a food processor and process until VERY smooth. Add water if needed. Store in the refrigerator for about a week, or in the freezer for a few months.
and process until VERY smooth. Add water if needed. Store in the refrigerator for about a week, or in the freezer for a few months.Looking for some more pumpkin recipes?
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Roasting my own pumpkin is on my fall must-do list! So of course I was super excited to see this tutorial, except I just realized one thing… I don't have a food processor. -_- I do, however, have a pretty good Ninja blender with powers comparable to a Vitamix. Do you think I could still make puree or do I need to give it up?
You can definitely still make it! I used a blender until this year when I finally got a food processor. It's definitely more frustrating to use a blender – you may have to keep stirring it to get it perfectly smooth. But it is doable! 🙂
Do I need to squeeze the water out of the pumpkin puree with cheesecloth before using it to make pumpkin pie?
If the puree seems really watery (more watery than canned pumpkin), that would be a good idea. Otherwise you don’t need to!