Thanksgiving
Pumpkin Pie Spice
Pumpkin Pie Spice is a blend of spices associated with the Fall season, Halloween, and Thanksgiving. It’s very easy to make.
To start, you’ll need all of three minutes and the following ingredients: 3 tablespoons ground cinnamon, 2 teaspoons ground ginger, 2 teaspoons ground nutmeg, 1 ½ teaspoons ground allspice and 1 ½ teaspoons ground cloves. Mix the spices together in a small bowl and take a little whiff. (Smells like heaven, right?) Store the mixture in a clean small jar or spice container. See? So easy.
You can customize your personal blend by bumping up the ginger and cloves, for a sharper, more robust flavor, or go light on those and amp up the cinnamon for a softer flavor. When you make it yourself, you can make it JUST right, and that’s worth doing at least once every Autumn.
Source: Betty Crocker
Brazilian Shrimp Stuffed Pumpkin
Camarao na Moranga
Ingredients:
- 1 medium pumpkin
- 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1 pound wild caught large shrimp (prawn), cleaned and deveined
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 1 jalapeño pepper, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 4 large ripe tomatoes, chopped
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped
- 1 cup cream cheese
- salt and pepper
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350F/ 180C.
Wash the pumpkin and cut off the top. Scoop out the flesh and remove all seeds. Wrap it in aluminum foil and place it onto a baking tray, cut-off side down. Bake for about 40-50 minutes, until it is nearly soft. Remove it from the oven and unwrap from aluminium foil. Set aside.
In a large pan, heat olive oil on medium heat. Sauté the onion for 2-3 minutes, until golden. Add garlic, chopped jalapeño and cook for 3-4 minutes. Add shrimp to the pan and continue cooking for another minute. Add chopped fresh tomatoes, season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes are soft, for approximately 5 minutes. Remove from heat and add fresh cilantro. Set aside.
Using a spoon, spread the cream cheese inside the pumpkin, trying to coat all the inside area. Pour shrimp stew into the pumpkin and return to the oven. Bake for another 20 minutes, or until cheese melts and pumpkin becomes really soft inside. Remove from oven, sprinkle some more fresh cilantro on top. Serve warm with white rice on the side.
Makes: 4 servings
Source: Adore Foods
All Saints’ Day Pumpkin
Calabaza de Todos Los Santos
In the Basque countries, Spanish and French, the pumpkin is also associated with the supernatural feeling of the Halloween season. This dish is traditionally found on November the 1st in many peasant homes.
Ingredients:
- 1 large pumpkin
- 1 lb rice, uncooked
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 large green pepper
- 2 lbs medium shrimps, sautéed in butter
- 1 tbsp grated onion
- 2 tbsp butter
- salt and pepper to taste
Clean and de-vein shrimps, chop green pepper and garlic. Sauté in 1 tablespoon butter and add onion. Cut the top from pumpkin, remove all the seeds.
- Note: Save the top to use as a lid.
Place rice in pumpkin, put the rest of the ingredients on top of the rice, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Attach the lid with toothpicks. Place pumpkin on baking tray and bake in a 325 oven for 1 – 2 1/2 hours. To serve, remove the lid and scoop out the pumpkin / rice / shrimp mixture. Serves 6 to 8.
From: Authentic Spanish Cooking
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