pumpkin fest

this sunday, october 23rd, there will be a pumpkin festival at the seaport market. pumpkin cooking demos, a giant pumpkin, pumpkin carving contest & an after-hours pumpkin walk... lots o' family fun. to get in the swing of things, i cooked up some pumpkin stuff yesterday & will bake up some pumpkin stuff today.

i was a little apprehensive to deal with them, i'm used to simply splitting them, removing the seeds, roasting them with pumpkin pie spices & pureeing them for desserts - or carving them for halloween. but instead i treated them like i would a butternut squash & it was surprisingly easy.

first off, i peeled them...

then, diced...

then roasted...

these ones were destined for a wild rice salad. it also has pumpkin seeds, toasted walnuts, dried cranberries, red onion, sage & a maple vinaigrette.

there is also a pumpkin-centric vegan main course. this one has sort of a moroccan flare. i roasted the pumpkin with cumin & sumac.

then added it to a rich stew of onions, garlic, ginger, harissa, dates, lemon, cauliflower & cilantro and is served with toasted almond quinoa. large $15 small $7.5

i also have a pumpkin, ginger & cardamom soup in the freezer.

on today's prep list: mini pumpkin-maple cheesecakes, pumpkin tarts & pumpkin spice cupcakes. 

and to complete to whole pumpkin theme...

a new orange outfit! and sara of vintage pink treasures is making me a new orange necklace... i may have gotten a little carried away...

but don't worry, there are all of the usual treats as well. yesterday saw the largest batch of shepherd's pie i have ever endeavoured to make.

15 larges & 20 smalls - no gonna lie, it was quite the upper body workout! large $18 small $9

there's also a quinoa salad with kalamata olives, artichokes, tomatoes, cucumbers, roasted peppers, basil, oregano & arugula.

and lots of frozen goodies as well:

salt cod fish cakes & baked beans

mac & cheese - broccoli or plain

braised chicken in ratatouille with parmesan polenta

sausage & cheese curd penne with kale

chicken leek & broccoli pie (just smalls left)

braised pork & sweet potato pie

creamy british fish pie

& soups:

cream of cauliflower

vegan vegetable stew

bean, lenti & veggie

potato, leek, celery root & parsnip

beet, parsnip & pear

curried butternut squash

cream of broccoli (1 left)

vegan chili

baked beans

seafood chowder

beef stew

thai chicken & rice

okee dokee better get to work. see you this weekend & make sure to check out the pumpkin festival on sunday - lots of other vendors will have pumpkin themed goodies as well!