the Pumpkin Parade...ta dah!

Above are our baby sugar pumpkins that grew so well this year.  I used them for pies and cakes but also savoury recipes like soup, stews and casseroles.  Canadian tend to think of pumpkin as a Hallowe'en carving instrument but in most places in the world they are actually eaten as a vegetable like squash.  I was in Jamaica this spring for a month and learned about how they use pumpkin extensivley in curries and soups.

The start of the fall line-up.  Below is a yellow pumpkin.  We grew a lot of them this year.... seeds where from Arlene Hummel's pumpkin I bought at the Powassan Farmer's Market last fall.

Below is a kaboche squash.  Very sweet flesh like a butternut squash.  These were other seeds I saved from an organic squash I bought from Gypsy Wholefoods Warehouse last spring.

It is easy to save squash and pumpkin seeds from this fall's harvest for your next garden.  When you eat your squash separate some of the seeds and dry them.  Use your fingers to remove all the pulp bits and spread them out on a plate.  Don't rush the drying part or your seeds may go moldy if they are put away still part damp...  I have a fireplace in our main room so they dry well there.  I have had good success with drying them on a plate and turning them every day using your fingers.   Put them in a glass jar when they are very dry and grow them next year in your garden.

This is the kaboche  getting prepped for an oven roast.  This pie plate is from the 1930's... I  bought it from my friend Donna Gray at a garage sale at her parent's house in Commanda.   Grandma ate pie every day and didn't gain weight...well their pie plates were an inch and half deep.  Very different than the deep dish pie plate so common today.  On top of that they worked very hard every day to grow and preserve food and make it through our old time northern winters.

Second year growing the Italian pumpkins .  The season was poor last summer so they never went orange.

Bingo!  Starting to go orange.

Pretty little delicata squash.  I grow them because they are beautiful.... but also delicious.

Delicata prepped for the oven.  Add some water to the bottom and bake until tender.  Some people like to cover their baked items with tin foil but I don't recommend this.  Foil is expensive and not the best environmental or green choice.  Most kitchen plates and dishes are approved for use in an oven.  Cover with a plate or just keep a watchful eye and add a bit more water if the squash dries out.