The uncut pumpkins were turned into dessert . . .

About a year ago, I read the book Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver. The book recounts a year that the Kingsolver family – Barbara, her husband and two daughters – spent as locavores, eating only locally grown foods. Accomplished gardeners, the family grew a large garden in southern Appalachia and spent the summer and fall preserving the harvest. Any food that they didn’t raise themselves came from local farms.

I’m probably not the only one who said “Cool! I wish I could do that!” as I read along.

Well, I don’t have the room in my garden, the resolve, or the family support to try a project like that. But I have resolved to actually use everything I grow in my garden.

Before I made this commitment, the growing was the attraction – Can I grow beets? Can I grow eggplants? Okra is a cool plant; I’ll grow some! No matter that I’ve never eaten beets (other than pickled), I don’t really care for eggplant, and I’m not sure what to do with okra.

Chunks of pumpkin, waiting to be roasted . . .

This summer I was more careful in my planning. We ate lots and tried new things, like kale chips. We shared with the neighbors. I canned several kinds of pickles, salsas of two different heat levels, tomato sauce and hot peppers. I dried a lot of tomatoes and squash. I froze zucchini and pesto. And this last week, I used my fall decorations to make pumpkin pie.

I cut the pumpkins into large pieces, removed the seeds, placed them on a cooking tray with ½-inch of water, covered it all with foil, and roasted them until tender at 350 degrees. It took about 90 minutes. Then I pureed the pumpkin flesh in the food processor and froze the puree in 2-cup portions. I got enough to make 6 pies, with a little left over to make scones or a pumpkin flan.

Pumpkin Pie!

Actually, my daughter, Kara, made the first pie. She is the family expert on pumpkin pie making. And we roasted the pumpkin seeds with a little canola oil and seasoned salt. A tasty snack!

Now, you don’t have to tell me that I could have donated some of my unused produce to a food bank, had I picked it in a timely fashion. Next summer, I’ll try to take that next step.

Happy Gardening!