Starting to Harvest Pumpkins

I'm beginning to bring in pumpkins and winter squash. The squash bugs have tried very hard to completely destroy my crops, but I do have some nice pumpkins and several kinds of winter squash. I would like to leave them on the vine for another month, but when the bugs start destroying the vines I've got to pick them or lose them. I'll store the ones with good intact stems and bake the rest and make squash puree.

Here's a couple of good squash recipes. Whenever I have a really pretty squash or pumpkin I'll use it as a serving dish. It makes a showy presentation. Last Thanksgiving I saved my biggest and best Musquee de Provence squash and baked the cornbread dressing in it. Everyone loved it.

Pumpkin-Coconut Bisque
1 3/4 cups pumpkin purée
2 Tbs. vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
1 Tbs. shredded fresh ginger
1/2 to 1 tsp. red curry paste, or to taste
1 3/4 cups light coconut milk
6 Tbs. frozen orange juice concentrate
1/2 cup vegetable broth
Salt to taste
1/2 cup toasted pumpkin seeds for garnish
1 cup garlic-flavored croutons for garnish

1. Preheat oven to 450F. Put pumpkin purée into ovenproof dish, and heat until edges brown, about 15 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, heat oil in large skillet or wok over medium heat, and sauté onion and ginger about 10 minutes. Add curry paste; sauté 2 minutes more. Put onion mixture and 1 cup roasted pumpkin purée into blender or food processor; add 1 cup coconut milk, and purée until smooth.

3. Pour mixture into saucepan, and stir in remaining pumpkin purée, coconut milk, apple juice, vegetable stock and salt. Heat 5 minutes. Garnish each serving with sprinkling of pumpkin seeds and croutons.

I love squash, and I love candied ginger. So the recipe is a real winner.

Ginger-roasted Winter Squash
1 butternut or kabocha squash
1 Tbs. honey
2 Tbs. currants
2 Tbs. minced orange zest
1/4 cup toasted pecans, roughly chopped
1 Tbs. candied ginger, minced
1 Tbs. butter, melted
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Slice squash in half, scoop out and discard the seeds. Combine honey, currants, orange zest, pecans and candied ginger; fill the squash cavity. Brush the cut flesh of the squash with melted butter. Pour excess over the filled cavity. Bake about 40 minutes or until the squash pierces easily. Serves two.