Homemade Pumpkin Puree: Quick and Easy
Pumpkin is one of those seasonal items that just makes sense. Sweet and delicious, it adds the perfect autumn flavor to any dish. Not only is it delicious, but it is also ridiculously easy to make pumpkin puree at home with amazing flavor for a fraction of the cost of canned.
My favorite autumn kitchen project has been roasting pumpkins for homemade puree. The scent that wafts through the house is absolutely irresistible. It makes me want to curl up with a loaf of pumpkin bread and a good book (I am reading A Tale of Two Cities currently and wow! I wish I had begun it sooner). Don’t worry y’all, a few pumpkin recipes will be coming to the blog next week and throughout the rest of the fall season!
So now, let’s jump into this ridiculously easy pumpkin puree tutorial!
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
Wash and dry your pumpkins. I like to use pie pumpkins, but many different kinds will work. If in doubt, ask your local farmer! The best place to get your pumpkins from is a local farm or produce stand – the quality, even if not organic, is infinitely better than the canned stuff. (Though we certainly use canned food in our home as well!)
Half or quarter your pumpkins, depending on the size. Use your hands or a spoon to remove all of the seeds and “stringy bits” from the pumpkin that you are able. Set these aside and separate the seeds to make spiced pumpkin seeds (blog coming soon)! Lightly scrape the inside of the pumpkin to remove all of the strings, careful not to remove the flesh.
Place cut side down onto a roasting pan and place on the middle rack of the preheated oven.
Bake for 60 minutes – 90 minutes (1 hour 30 minutes), depending on the size of the pumpkin. Mine took about one hour!
Remove when extremely fork-tender, and allow to cool for 15-20 minutes.
Once the pumpkin has begun to cool, place a colander over a large bowl. Begin scooping the pumpkin into the colander to allow the excess water to drain if you have a particularly liquid product. I like to gently stir the pumpkin every few minutes to facilitate more drainage. This step is extremely important so that the puree is as close in texture to canned as possible so that you can use it 1:1 in recipes!
I did not need to do this step with these pumpkins, so use your discretion.
Once the pumpkin has sufficiently cooled and seems to have been appropriately drained, you have two options. You can either toss the pumpkin into the blender and puree it or bag it now and choose to puree it if needed when it is time to make your recipe!
To store, I use freezer bags. I like to store 2 cups in each bag since that seems to be the perfect amount for most recipes I make!
Make sure to write the date and freeze flat, then reorganize them if necessary. This will help with quick thawing and storage. Thaw under cool water or overnight under refrigeration.
Homemade Pumpkin Puree
Ingredients
- 1 5-6 pound pumpkin
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Wash and dry your pumpkins.
- Half or quarter your pumpkins, depending on the size. Use your hands or a spoon to remove all of the seeds and “stringy bits” from the pumpkin
- Place cut side down onto a roasting pan and place on the middle rack of the preheated oven.
- Bake for 60 minutes – 90 minutes (1 hour 30 minutes), depending on the size of the pumpkin.
- Remove when extremely fork-tender, and allow to cool for 15-20 minutes.
- Once the pumpkin begins to cool, place a colander over a large bowl. Scoop the pumpkin into the colander to allow the excess water to drain.
- Puree the pumpkin in a blender once cool or using an immersion blender.
Notes
Go forth and bake!
I would love to see how y’all’s pumpkin puree turns out and what you’re making with it! Stay tuned on the blog for a pumpkin maple granola coming on Tuesday, November 1! Tag me in your baking photos over on Instagram @makeshifthomestead.
Have a great day y’all!
One thought on “Homemade Pumpkin Puree: Quick and Easy”
Comments are closed.