It's just not Halloween if you don't carve yourself a pumpkin or two. But when the day is done and November is well and truly upon us, what do we do to beat the glut?
Pumpkin has a reputation in this country for being a bit bland, but a good pumpkin has a delicious sweet, earthy flavour. As a good starting point, you can swap pumpkin in for all your favourite squash recipes, or just scroll down for some more inspiration on what to do with those leftover pumpkins!
Squash or zapallo is a common ingredient in many South American recipes. Picarones are a popular Peruvian and Chilean dessert or snack made from pumpkin and sweet potato, topped with chancaca honey. Empanadas, a Latin American pie similar in shape to the Cornish pasty, can also be filled with pumpkin and crumbly feta cheese for a delicious starter.
Pumpkin seeds are a great source of vitamins and minerals. To get the most out of the pumpkin seeds’ benefits, try them roasted or toasted as a garnish for soups, salads or main dishes. Anna Hansen’s simple Salmon sashimi includes a fantastically easy toasted pumpkin seed garnish with chilli flakes and sea salt.
William Drabble's Pumpkin and turkey risotto is a fantastically inventive way of using up leftovers. William cooks down his pumpkin in butter and uses it to create a stock to cook his risotto rice in, making it luscious and creamy. You could swap out any leftover meat or veg to go with it, or eat it on it's own – it's that good.
If you've got a dinner party coming up, and a glut of pumpkins at your door, Tom Aikens' Mini pumpkin and ricotta tarts with spiced honey make for fantastic canapés. Don't be dissuaded by the long list of ingredients – the method is actually very simple, and the results are seriously impressive.