With fall upon us, many of you might be in the midst of making all things pumpkin. Using homemade pumpkin puree in your recipes is not only totally easy, but it can be done right in the comfort of your own home. Say “goodbye” to store-bought pumpkin puree, and creatively recycle your left over pieces of pumpkin. AllFreeSlowCookerRecipes is going to break down the “science” behind this easy-to-do food project, and show you how to make your very own easy-peasy slow cooker pumpkin puree. A few easy steps will lead to an effortless homemade pumpkin puree that you can use in any of your pumpkin dessert recipes for fall that call for pumpkin puree, or any savory pumpkin recipes you’ve been dying to try. Below, you’ll find our simple, step-by-step instructions and various tips for slow cooking a good pumpkin puree at home. Keep reading, and you’ll also find a few recipes you can make with your freshly-made pumpkin puree!
Steps for Making Your Own Pumpkin Puree
Images courtesy of savingyoudinero.com
- Use sugar pie pumpkins or other small, sweet, and flavorful varieties with dark orange-colored flesh — they’re perfect baking purposes. (*Larger field pumpkins — used for jack-o-lantern making, are too large and stringy inside for baking.)
- A medium-sized (4-pound) pumpkin yields around 1½ cups of mashed pumpkin. This puree can be used in all your recipes calling for canned pumpkin.
- Remove the innards of the pumpkin. Make sure to get all the guts and seeds out of there.
- Cut your pumpkin into small sections (quarters is a good rule of thumb), and place those sections flesh down in the slow cooker.
- Fill your slow cooker with water. About 1 or so inches will suffice, but it depends on how much pumpkin you’ve put in–there’s no need to go overboard here.
- Set your slow cooker on HIGH, and cook your pumpkin for about 4 hours. This time could vary depending on the size of your slow cooker and how quickly it heats up. You’ll know when it’s done when the flesh has begun to separate from the skin of the pumpkin.
- Finally, you’ll need to scoop out all the flesh from the skin of your pumpkin, and throw it in the food processor or blender.
- Blend away until it’s finely pureed and use it right away in a recipe, or store it in freezer bags, and place them in the freezer until you’re ready to use them.
How simple was that? We think this is a must-have recipe for fall because honestly, who isn’t making at least a few pumpkin dishes during this time of year? You can easily do this same thing with squash or sweet potatoes for even more recipe options. For more instruction on pureeing in your slow cooker click here.
Recipes You Can Make Using Pumpkin Puree
Now that we’ve shown you how to make your own pumpkin puree, how about some recipes to get you going? Below, you’ll find a few of our favorite fall recipes that use pumpkin puree, referred to in many recipes as “canned pumpkin.” If you need even more ideas, just visit our website.
- Apple Pumpkin Cake
- Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bars
- Pumpkin Angel Food Cake with Caramel Sauce
- Famous Slow Cooker Pumpkin Bread
- Pumpkin Pie for Breakfast Oatmeal
- Maple Pumpkin Butter
What are your favorite seasonal recipes to make with pumpkin?
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