There’s more to pumpkin than lattes
A new cookbook delivers more than 100 recipes featuring the orange squash
It’s officially fall, according to the calendar and the triumphant return of the pumpkin spice latte offered by a certain ubiquitous coffee shop.
But if you like your autumn meals without “pumpkin spice sauce” and preservatives, a new cookbook has more than 100 recipes that include the seasonal squash.
Author Allison Day, a Hamiltonbased nutritionist and the blogger behind yummybeet.com, does include her version of what she calls the “loved (and loathed) drink,” but hers has far less sugar than the famous one.
The recipes also use the pumpkin seeds and seed oil, whole pumpkins and the canned puree in a surprising number of creative ways, such as pumpkin pizza, pumpkin ketchup and — if you must — matcha pumpkin spice latte with ginger and orange flower water. The book: Purely Pumpkin: More Than 100 Seasonal Recipes to Share, Savor and Warm Your Kitchen, in which every soup, salad, side, snack, main course, dessert and drink recipe includes pumpkin in some form. There’s also a guide to heirloom pumpkins and nutrition information. The quote: “From the creamy interior to the cosy pumpkin spice blend to the crunchy seeds and ludicrously green oil that’s made from the seeds, pumpkin gives us plenty to work with — and I’ve employed it throughout these pages in myriad ways.” The tester: I’ve never tried a pumpkin spice latte in my life and don’t plan on it. I do like pumpkin in all its other forms. Recipes I’m dying to make: Shakshuka with Pumpkin and Peppers, No-Knead Pumpkin Breakfast Braids, Easy Lentil Soup with Greens and Pumpkin, Roasted Garlic Pump- kin Hummus, Pumpkin Seed Oil Shortbread Jam Squares
Sharp Cheddar, Pumpkin and Pecan Scones
Many of the recipes are “gluten free, dairy-free and allergy-friendly,” but I used half spelt and half white flour, and served with butter. 1 cup (250 mL) white flour 1 cup (250 mL) spelt flour 3 tbsp (45 mL) sugar 1 tbsp (15 mL) baking powder 1/2 tsp (2.5 mL) salt 1/4 tsp (1.25 mL) ground nutmeg 6 tbsp (90 mL) unsalted butter, cubed, very cold 1 cup (250 mL) pumpkin puree 1/2 cup (125 mL) sharp, old cheddar cheese 1/2 cup (125 mL) pecans, chopped For the scones, in a food processor, add flours, sugar, baking powder, salt and nutmeg. Mix to combine. Pulse in butter until mixture resembles a coarse meal. Add pumpkin and mix to combine. Add cheese and pecans. Pulse until dough comes together.
Lightly flour your surface. Using a lightly floured rolling pin, roll dough half an inch thick. Using a cookie cutter, cut dough into rounds and place on baking sheet.
Gather scraps, reroll and cut remaining dough into rounds. Bake in 350 F/180 C oven for 15 minutes or until golden brown.