The Great Pumpkin

The Great Pumpkin

The tradition of carving toothy grins on pumpkins began long ago. People believed that if they carved a scary face on a gourd, pumpkin or even a turnip they would be protected from dangerous supernatural beings. Back in the dark times of Europe many tales were told in autumn about October 31^st. As this was the day the spirits roamed the earth, special precautions were taken, and the Jack-O-Lantern was one of them.

There is an Old Irish legend about a man named Stingy Jack, who was too mean to go to heaven, had played so many tricks on the devil he couldn’t go to hell. When he died he had to walk the earth carrying a turnip with a burning coal in it. Stingy Jack became known as "Jack of the lantern" or "Jack-o-lantern.

From this legend came the tradition of setting a Jack-o-lantern in a window or on door steps to scare away Jack and other wondering lost spirits. There are pumpkin and gourd myths from all over the world.

The countless number of seeds in these fruits symbolized life and abundance. Great magic was attributed to the seeds that the ancients associated with creation. In Indian myth, Sumati, the wife of king Sagara, had 60,000 sons at one time, which she accomplished by giving birth to a gourd. Her sons emerged from the gourd shell. In other myths the seeds of gourds or pumpkins produced the sun, the moon, the stars, and the human race. In Burmese mythology, a primordial spirit created the pumpkin, then other spirits added arms, legs, eyes and other body parts until they made a whole human. This must be where they came up with the idea for Mr. Potato Head.

In Hawaiian myth the Goddess Papa gave birth to a gourd, and Wakea, her partner, formed the world from it. The skin of the pumpkin represented the sky; the pulp formed the sun, the seeds were the stars, the lining the moon, the meat the clouds; and the juice became the rain.

The pumpkin in Cinderella was magic, in an Italian version of the story, Cinderella’s mother gave birth to a pumpkin, and Cinderella was in this pumpkin. Her mother left her in the Forrest. A king came along, found it and eventually married the girl inside.

African myths told stories of talking gourds and magic gourds that could bless one with riches. Taoists magicians kept gourds to imprison evil spirits and demons. A Japanese myth tells of a genie that kept a gourd full of the elixir of life. The Chinese so respected gourds they created their own constellations in the sky next to the stars of delphinius. The constellation Hou-koua means good gourd and Pai-Koua means rotten gourd. The Chinese made wine by soaking the flesh in alcohol and rice water. The gourd harvest was important to the Chinese for food and wine and vessels. The double or twin gourd represented both the yin and the yang to the Taoists. For me, pumpkins represent memories of a chill in the air, shorter days, falling red and golden leaves, spiced rum and hot apple cider and a warm fire. Pumpkins mean it’s time for funny costumes, candy and Thanksgiving. It is also a time for pumpkin carving contests and parties. There are also contests for the largest pumpkins and pies.

The largest pumpkin recorded weighed 1,689 pounds and the world’s largest pumpkin pie weighed 2,020.

Pumpkins and all squash are extremely nutritious, recent scientific studies have proven squash possesses cancer-fighting agents. They are high in fiber, potassium, and vitamin C. Pumpkins contain high amounts of beta-carotene, which is great for eyesight hair and skin. Vitamin A is also an essential nutrient for strong bones. Another good thing about squash is its filling; it is a natural for weight loss. So, please, don’t carve this beautiful gift and throw it away. Pumpkins are food! If you must carve then save the pieces you cut out and bake them, carve the pumpkin one or two days before Halloween so it doesn’t rot and can still be eaten. Also, roast the seeds, which contain iron, B vitamins, protein and vitamin E. Today I will teach you how to properly skin a pumpkin and roast the seeds. It is well worth the effort and trust me, after eating a pumpkin pie made from fresh pumpkin you will never use canned again.

First scoop out the seeds, wash them and let them dry, then bake them on an oiled cookie sheet at 250 degrees in the oven for an hour.

Scrape out the stringy stuff from the inside of the pumpkin, cut it in half or for a large ones cut it into pieces. Place the pumpkin skin side up in a shallow baking dish with about an inch of water in it. . Bake at 350 for about an hour or until a knife slides in easily. Remove from oven and allow it to cool. Peel skins off by hand and freeze hunks or put it in a blender or food processor ‘til smooth, then can it or freeze in freezer bags. Add to favorite recipe.

Enjoy!

If you have a favorite recipe you would like to share please email me at Crystalhayes @ peak.org