On one of our September visits to Orchard Hill Farm, along with the usual selection of wonderful veggies, fruits, herbs and flowers, we were told we could help ourselves to some brilliantly coloured Indian corn and a pumpkin.Now, I'm not talking about a Charlie Brown's pumpkin patch kind of pumpkin. I'm talking about a full spectrum of shapes and sizes from tall and slender to wide and squat, some with deep ridges and some almost completely smooth, and colours ranging from
creamy white to deep, deep scarlet. I must have been standing there looking like I'd just moved from the big city because Michelle approached to recommend what she felt was the most beautiful variety;
the Rouge Vif d'Estampes, or Cinderella Pumpkin.
The Rouge Vif d'Estampes "is deep red-orange, flattened, heavily sutured and was the prototype for Cinderella's carriage pumpkin". I had to agree, it really was the most incredible looking pumpkin I have ever seen. We put it, and the corn, in our front room to enjoy.
Fast forward two months ...
Recently, while visiting Martha and Ken at the farm, I noticed what looked like a pumpkin which had been dropped from a ladder, sitting squashed on a baking sheet. When I asked what had happened, Martha explained she had simply baked her entire pumpkin in the oven (pricked a few times to let the air escape) and a piece of which was the base of the soup we had just eaten (which was really yummy). So, after we had enjoyed looking at our beautiful scarlet pumpkin for as long as we could (until November 17, in fact), I put the whole thing on a sheet and baked it at 250f until it collapsed (about an hour).
A word of caution; these babies hold a lot of moisture, so prick your vents towards the top and expect alot of juice when you slice into it, after it cools.
As for Hallowe'en, apart from one suspicious character offering to do some cheap home repairs, our first ever real Trick 'r Treater came in the form of a very scary skeleton.
Our other, run-of-the-mill, carved pumpkin may well
have survived the ride home from the store on Robin's bike and a fall off the make-shift window display table, but the morning after Hallowe'en, somebody enjoyed kicking it down the street.
At least we didn't get egged!
creamy white to deep, deep scarlet. I must have been standing there looking like I'd just moved from the big city because Michelle approached to recommend what she felt was the most beautiful variety;the Rouge Vif d'Estampes, or Cinderella Pumpkin.
The Rouge Vif d'Estampes "is deep red-orange, flattened, heavily sutured and was the prototype for Cinderella's carriage pumpkin". I had to agree, it really was the most incredible looking pumpkin I have ever seen. We put it, and the corn, in our front room to enjoy.
Fast forward two months ...Recently, while visiting Martha and Ken at the farm, I noticed what looked like a pumpkin which had been dropped from a ladder, sitting squashed on a baking sheet. When I asked what had happened, Martha explained she had simply baked her entire pumpkin in the oven (pricked a few times to let the air escape) and a piece of which was the base of the soup we had just eaten (which was really yummy). So, after we had enjoyed looking at our beautiful scarlet pumpkin for as long as we could (until November 17, in fact), I put the whole thing on a sheet and baked it at 250f until it collapsed (about an hour).
A word of caution; these babies hold a lot of moisture, so prick your vents towards the top and expect alot of juice when you slice into it, after it cools.
As for Hallowe'en, apart from one suspicious character offering to do some cheap home repairs, our first ever real Trick 'r Treater came in the form of a very scary skeleton.
Our other, run-of-the-mill, carved pumpkin may well
have survived the ride home from the store on Robin's bike and a fall off the make-shift window display table, but the morning after Hallowe'en, somebody enjoyed kicking it down the street.At least we didn't get egged!
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