In honor of Halloween, here is a Top Ten Uses of Pumpkin list for your enjoyment:
10. Means of transportation on the high seas or emergency flotation device (pumpkin boats; see the video).
9. Elementary Math Lessons. Determine circumference and radius. How much does a pumpkin weigh? Estimate the number of seeds. Check out pumpkin math ideas here.
8. Cholesterol-lowering snack. After ruthlessly scooping out the innards of a pumpkin, clean the seeds, bake them in the oven and enjoy your healthy snack. Pumpkin seeds contain phytosterols, compounds that that have been shown to reduce levels of LDL cholesterol, as well as magnesium, a mineral needed in the diet.
7. Physics Laboratory. Pumpkin Chuckin’ Contest (video).
6. Soup Bowl.
5. Stress Reducer. Satisfy your destructive tendencies by taking after-Halloween pumpkins and dropping them from great height onto the ground. Bonus points for reuse as compost by smashing them onto potential gardening areas.
4. Pumpkin Beer. More stress relief. Recipe here.
3. Pet Dietary Supplement.
Kitty Kidney Diet
For cats, 1–2 tsp. per meal. Also a good source of liquid for those kitties that don’t drink enough water.
Canine Antioxidants
Use baked pumpkin to supplement your dog food. Serve dogs up to ½ cup per meal, as a good source of fiber and antioxidants.
Elephant treat
Toss a pumpkin to your favorite elephant. He will smash it with a foot and then devour the delicious pieces.
2. Anti-Aging Facial Treatment. Pumpkin facials are all the rage. A quick web search will find one for you.
1. Extract DNA from Your Pumpkin (a method so simple even an parrot could do it).
Happy Halloween from your Promega Bloggers
Note: Parrot DNA extraction photo from http://sci-toys.com/scitoys/scitoys/biology/pumpkin_dna/pumpkin_dna.html.
Ok. So here is my Top Five List of things NOT to do with Pumpkin. All from personal experience.
DO NOT:
1. Hollow your pumpkin out and fill it with guacamole for a party. Pumpkin flavored guacamole is disgusting.
2. Make pumpkin bread, pumpkin pancakes, pumpkin muffins, and pumpkin ravioli and eat them all in one weekend. (Digestive disruption.)
3. Leave your pumpkins “unattended” on your front porch (during a rainy season) for too long so they rot and sag from the inside out.
4. Put pumpkin seeds in the oven at 400 degrees, go out and walk your dog, get in a lively debate with a neighbor about your lack of leave-raking ability, and FORGET all about the seeds. Burnt pumpkin seeds smell very, very bad.
5. Decide to throw your pumpkin guts down the garbage disposal. Trust me on this one. $800 for a Thanksgiving day plumber and a new kitchen pipe later we learned the effects of hardened pumpkin guts.
People, take this pumpkin season very seriously. And Happy Halloween!!!
Ahhh, I love this time of year. I actually just threw a pumpkin carving party on Tuesday where a handful of good friends came over to eat baked ziti, murder innocent gourds and watch “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” on TV. The truly exuberant creativity of several people wielding sharp objects while falling in love with Snoopy all over again and drinking adult beverages is not to be understated.
I have to share the hands-down most successful new recipe involving pumpkin from our Thanksgiving feast last year: Pumpkin-Gingersnap Tiramisu. Oh yeah, you heard me right. Move over, pumpkin pie…
http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/pumpkin-gingersnap-tiramisu