I processed these pumpkins today! More on that later...
We survived the windstorm unscathed, which I am incredibly thankful for. Wind speeds were recorded at up to 131 km/h elsewhere in the province, with considerable damages incurred. The wildfires are under control, but not before claiming two lives, and severely injuring two others. Families are making their way back to the communities they were evacuated from. Lots of folks were without power for most of the night and a portion of the day as well. So we were very fortunate and blessed to have come through without even a missing roof shingle!
There was a random piece of aluminum soffit wrapped around our fence, which I'm not sure where it came from.
And the wind blew hard enough to toss some straw bales off our stack. Otherwise, it was easily-recovered items that went for a short tumble through the yard before safely coming to rest in the ditch in front of our yard! One tree went over in one of the empty paddocks too, but it was already dead and didn't cause any harm. Firewood now, I guess!
Now, back to the pumpkins; the easiest way to process a pumpkin is NOT to chop it and peel it and boil it and strain it. First of all, that's waaaaay to much work. Second of all, its a really good way to send yourself to the emergency room, because even with a sharp knife, pumpkins are very hard to cut. Instead, I let the oven do the work.
First, wash pumpkin, and pierce the pumpkin's rind in several places with a fork.
Next, into the oven, with a small pan underneath to catch any drippings and make them easier to pick up later.
I didnt actually time it, but it would have been approximately 2 hours later, they were done!
Let them cool down for a while. The next step CAN be done immediately, but it hurts too much that way, so I like to wait. Cut the top of the pumpkin out as you would for a jack-o-lantern.
A slightly firmer pressure will lift the pumpkin flesh away from the rind.
Then, gently scoop seeds and pulp from the main pumpkin shell. Depending on specific pumpkins, there might be a lot of watery liquid in there too, which can be carefully poured or ladled out.
Last but not least, scoop out the pumpkin flesh, supporting the rind with your other hand to prevent messy tears.
And that's it! Mash or puree the pumpkin if desired (I thought it came out pretty smooth as it was), then bag and freeze, or use fresh in baked goods, soup, or whatever strikes your fancy!
Oh, I almost forgot the daily sheep picture. I didn't actually take one today! So here's one from a few weeks ago:
That's all for tonight, steemians! Gotta spend some quality time bagging pumpkin with my husband now.
Hey, get yer mind outta the gutter ;D