Homemade Roasted Pumpkin Puree Recipe

I wanted to post this homemade roasted pumpkin puree recipe for a while now. I ended up with 5 small pumpkins in the house and after using them for decoration and moving them from room to room (thinking that if I don't see them, they will vanish magically), I finally decided to get off my bottom to make something before they go bad.

This basic pumpkin puree recipe is from 'The Pumpkin Spice Handbook' (my photo is published in this book). The pumpkins I had probably weighed about 3~4 lbs, so I roasted 2 pumpkins in 2 batches.

Fresh homemade pumpkin puree tastes and smells amazing. It freezes beautifully too, so go ahead more than what you need and freeze for later use. I used this puree to make these pumpkin dinner rolls, pumpkin soup (recipe coming up soon) and even pumpkin spice coffee for my coffee loving husband.

Ingredients:

• 1 Medium Pumpkin (about 4~6lbs)
• Pinch Salt (optional)

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. Using a sharp knife, remove the stem of the pumpkin. Carefully slit the pumpkin in half from the top to bottom.
3. Scoop out the seeds and fibers using a spoon or an ice cream scoop.
4. Sprinkle the insides with salt and place them cut side down on a parchment or foil covered baking sheet. Bake for 30~45 minutes or until a knife easily pierces through the skin. Remove from the oven and cool completely, about an hour.
5. Scrape out the flesh and blend in a food processor or blender to smooth mixture. Store in the fridge for 1 week or freeze for up to 3 months.

Linking this to Valli's 'Cooking from Cookbook Challenge: November -- Week 3'.