Qurator's: Hive Top Chef! | Pumpkin Shell Pie

For this week's Qurator's: Hive Top Chef! we talk about unusual recipes.

I saw stuffed vegetables, many times, but usually in the form of savory dishes. It really surprised me when I realized it's possible to make a pie in a pumpkin shell.
I was making pumpkin pie and cake before, but because there was always just a small amount of pumpkin in there I could never taste the pumpkin inside. But this time I could really taste the pumpkin as there was still a thick layer of pumpkin between the cake and the shell and I found out the pumpkins are great in desserts.
There's also a pumpkin puree and pumpkin spice in the recipe.
If you wish to find out how I made pumpkin spice, check out my post on Dehydration Project; Storing spices and herbs.

Ingredients:

• 1 Hokkaido pumpkin- 200 g of pumpkin puree
• 120 ml of sunflower oil
• 3 flax eggs- 2 tablespoons of ground flaxseeds and 5 tablespoons of water
• 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• 80 g of sugar
• 120 g of all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder
• a pinch of salt
• 1 tablespoon of pumpkin spice
• 50 g of vegan chocolate
• a few almonds

Preparation:

1. Cut off the top of the pumpkin. Clean out the pulp and seeds- you can save it for other recipes like roasted pumpkin seeds and pulp for vegetable stock.
   
   Carve out some pumpkin meat, using a knife and a spoon, but leave it thick enough that will hold the batter during baking- approximately 1.5 cm. Be careful not to damage the shell.
   
2. For pumpkin puree, cook 200 g of pumpkin meat for 20 minutes and blend well.
   
3. Prepare flax eggs; mix 2 tablespoons of flaxseeds and 5 tablespoons of water and set it aside for a few minutes.
4. With an electric mixer, combine oil, pumpkin puree, flax eggs, apple cider vinegar and vanilla extract. At slow speed, start adding flour baking powder, salt and pumpkin spice.
   
5. Pour the batter into the carved pumpkin and place it in a preheated oven at 185°C for 60- 70 minutes- or less if you have a smaller pumpkin.
   
6. In a double boiler, melt the chocolate and pour it on the top of the cake. Add few almonds.
   Cool down before serving.