Stuffed Pumpkins
- Yield 8 servings
"I wanted to cook something with a fresh pumpkin that still resembled a pumpkin when it was finished. My children helped me pick two small ones from the pumpkin patch, and together we learned how a fresh pumpkin can become so much more than a jack-o-lantern."
Ingredients
- 2 small pie pumpkins, about 7 inches in diameter each
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 medium onions, finely chopped
- 3 medium celery stalks, diced
- 3 medium carrots, peeled and diced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 cups cooked brown rice
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary leaves
- 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds, pecans, slivered almonds, or pine nuts, toasted
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F.
- Rinse outside of pumpkins well and pat dry. Cut tops off of pumpkins. Scoop out seeds and membranes and discard.
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook, until lightly browned stirring frequently, about 6 minutes.
- Add celery and carrots and cook 2 minutes. Add 1/2 cup water and salt. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes. Add rice, rosemary and seeds; mix well. Remove from heat.
- Fill pumpkins with rice mixture. Place pumpkins in a 13 x 9-inch glass baking dish and cover dish with foil. Bake 11/2 hours, or until pumpkin is fragrant and tender when pierced with a fork.
- Top serve, use a serving spoon to scoop out pumpkin flesh along with rice.
– Kimberly Hammond, Kingwood, Texas
