Vegetables are so important in maintaining a well-balanced diet, and by eating seasonally you’re also helping support thousands of farmers up and down the country who produce these wonderful ingredients. Every issue I’ll be showcasing a different seasonal vegetable that you can have a go at using, and this month it’s the pumpkin.
Native to Mexico, pumpkins are a variety of winter squash that are normally cultivated in the UK around September to October. In the UK, it is estimated that around 17 million pumpkins are purchased each year for Halloween, 14.5 million of which are wasted.
These shocking statistics are why promoting ways in which pumpkin can be eaten is crucial if we want to convince more people to turn their jack-o’-lantern leftovers into something delicious. If you have ever cooked with butternut squash, then you have already had experience cooking with winter squashes. Pumpkin can be used in very much the same way: the seeds can be roasted with spices to eat as a healthy snack or as a topping on a cake or bread; the flesh can be added to soup or blitzed to create the base for a beautiful pumpkin pie.
