Pumpkin Tutorials, Make Your Own Pumpkin Spice

MyFrugal Friday tip is the whole week of PUMPKIN RELATED information this week!

Look back over the post from this week and read the comments,there are some neat ideas in there!

TODAY IS THE LAST DAY for our Pumpkin Potholder giveaway!
Leave a comment and I’ll put your name in the hat for the GIVEAWAY.

Post on your blog linking back to here and
I’ll put your name in TWICE!

I’ll announce the winner TOMORROW morning.

Now read on for some more great ideas using pumpkins!

Oh yeah and there is a tutorial at the end!

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Pumpkins as Vases!

MARTHA has dozens of ideas!

Pumpkin Aligator

I LOVE these!

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Make Your Own Pumpkin Spice

1/4 cup cinnamon

1 T allspice

1 1/2 tsp. ground ginger

1 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1 tsp. ground cloves

Store in airtight container.
Use in muffins, pancakes, bread…

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Here is a GREAT way to make your own pumpkin!
Love it!

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Pumpkin Potholder Tutorial

You will need:
small amount of green fabric
small amount of orange, maybe 1/4 of a yard
scraps of batting
(I always save my quilting scraps of fabric and batting)
Orange thread
Sewing machine
scissors

Cut a strip of green fabric about 1 1/2 - 2 inches wide and 12 inches or so long.
I was just estimating and using scraps that I already had cut,
it does not need to be exact.

Fold the strip in half and press it;
fold both sides in and press it;
then in half again, press it, like a double bias tape.

Sew a zig zag all the way down. The purpose is to hide your raw edges.

Cut your orange fabric to look like a pumpkin.
I folded my fabric 4 times to get 4 pumpkins pieces,
I cut all 4 at one time.
The fabric was right sides together twice, so that they would be the same shape.
Be sure to make the bottom of the pumpkin flat so that it will be easy to stitch up.

Cut 2 layers of batting, place it under the pumpkin.
place wrong sides (non-printed side) of pumpkin together;
put them on top of the batting.
Place your stem as shown; gently lay the top layer of pumpkin down,
making sure it is even with the other pumpkin.

Pin your stem and pumpkin in place.

Starting a couple of inches over from the center bottom,
stitch around the pumpkin; remove your pin when you come to it.
Leave a 3-4 inch opening at the bottom.

Trim off excess fabric, batting and stem that is sticking out.
Carefully turn pumpkin right side out.

You may want to trim a little of the batting off at the bottom here.

Then fold your opening under, making a small seam, you can press it if it helps.
As closely to the fold as you can, sew the opening closed.
Be sure to backstitch to hold it secure.

Starting at the top center, sew half circles to make it look like a pumpkin. When you get to the bottom center, while your needle in down in the fabric, lift your presser foot up, turn your pumpkin in the opposite direction, put foot down and sew upward. continue this until you have enough lines sewn.

There you have it!

If you don’t want to make these, you can buy them from me for
$6 a set!

BUY NOW!

The Great Pumpkin- A Pumpkin Bowl- A Cake

I saw this cake this morning and am just LOVIN' IT! Now I would NEVER, EVER pay $110 for a cake, but this could be easily made, not only for ~~Halloween~~ Reformation Parties, but for Thanksgiving and harvest get togethers! Of course, having a few cake skills helps, but I think anyone could do this.

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I spent my childhood in Upstate New York. You cannot begin to appreciate the fall season unless you have experienced autumn in the North East! The colors are breathtaking!

One family tradition we had while I was a kid was going to the Pumpkin Farm. It had a huge pumpkin patch of course, and you could get hay rides, apples, cider and other seasonal goodies. It was just a fun, family atmosphere, not an evil, scary thing. There was a HUGE pumpkin, called The Great Pumpkin. I think it was made of paper mache'? A person would sit inside it and children could come up and ask him questions. Fun memories…

How many of us grew up watching Charlie Brown in the fall, in The Great Pumpkin?
HERE is a little trivia quiz you might have fun with.

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Making a Pumpkin Bowl

You can do this with most anything, pumpkins, cabbage, bell peppers, squash etc…

I made this one for the Bar n Party we went to last year!

Just cut the top off, carve it out.

You may need to thin out the top of the rim to make a larger opening.

This is great for dips, cheese cubes etc…

You could put a dip in one and have cubes of bread around it for dipping.

You could also use crackers around it. Use your imagination!

Garnish with some fresh herbs. This one has Rosemary in it.

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Pumpkin Pie Crust Cookies w/Dip

A great dip to be make when you have extra pie crust dough.

With the extra dough, make cutouts using leaf or pumpkin shaped cookie cutters.

Sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar and bake at 475o until firm, 5 to 7 minutes. Allow to cool.

For the Dip:

2 cups powdered sugar
1, 8 oz. pkg. cream cheese
16 oz. pumpkin puree
1 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. ginger (optional)

Combine powdered sugar and cream cheese.

Add pumpkin puree, cinnamon and ginger.

Refrigerate

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GIVE AWAY

Leave a comment
(preferably with a suggestion, a joke or funny story on how to use a pumpkin,but it is not necessary),and I'll put your name in the hat once.

Post on your blog linking back to this Give-Away

and
I will put your name in the hat TWICE for the drawing on Saturday
for a set of two

Pumpkin Pot Holders!

(pictured above)

Give Away ends Friday night at midnight.
Winner will be announced Saturday.

Pumpkin Powerhouse

Pumpkins are a Powerhouse of Nutrition!

ONE SERVING OF PUMPKIN HAS:

7 grams of fiber

More than 100% of your daily vitamin A (a lack of vitamin A can lead to night blindness)

beta carotene (lowers the risk of age-related macular degeneration)

carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin (which is good for your eye sight)

15% of your daily vitamin C

20% of your daily iron needs

alpha-carotene (lowers the risk of lung cancer)

seeds contain cucurbitacins (may be help prostate health)

Ways to get pumpkin into your family's diet all year long,
not just in the fall:

Of course… Pumpkin Bread and Pumpkin Pie!

Pumpkin Muffins with nuts for breakfast

Casseroles

Pumpkin Pancakes

Granola

Pumpkin Soup

Think of any recipe where you could throw in a little pumpkin and it wouldn't be too noticeable such as a vegetable soup.

Think of a way to add pumpkin to your diet maybe a couple times a month so the family won't grow to hate it. :o)

You may need to learn how to freeze or can pumpkin for the most nutritional value and flavor!
Check these out:

How to Make Pumpkin Puree

Canning Freezing

SEEDS!

Protein

Iron

B vitamins

vitamin E

high in unsaturated vegetable oil

seed coverings high in fiber

Save and roast your seeds.

First scoop out the seeds and wash them. You can dry out the seeds before baking, but it’s not necessary.

Spread seeds on a baking sheet. Use a little olive oil on the pan, then a little on top of the seeds. Butter would also work. Sprinkle with the seasonings of your choice (listed below).

Bake the seeds at 250-275 for about an hour or until crunchy;
stir every 20 minutes to keep from burning.

For a different twist on your seeds try:

salt , garlic salt or seasoning salt

curry powder

garlic powder

cayenne pepper

Worcestershire sauce or soy sauce

use your imagination…

Pumpkin seeds can be tossed in any recipe where you would normally add nuts.

Try adding the ground seeds to hot cereals.

Grind them up as fillers in most anything!

Store the seeds in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Seeds will last several months, but they often lose some of their flavor after a month or two.

Air seal would be the best way to preserve your seeds!

The pumpkin's bright yellow-orange flowers are edible!

To Answer a few pumpkin questions

I am thinking about making the pumpkin bread.

Can you advise me on how much time & at what temp.

Thanks

Blessings,
Michelle

My Answer:

Bake on 350 for about 15-20 minutes.

Rebekah asked:

How do you store pumpkins and how do you know when they are unusable?

My answer:

I cook up the pumpkins, cool them, then put them in freezer bags and freeze them.

Pumpkin Patches and More

Pumpkin Prayer- Choosing and Cooking a Pumpkin

Thank you for sharing all your pumpkin ideas and stories yesterday!

For those of you that commented yesterday about cooking your pumpkins, you can not use a Jack-O-Lantern. If you want pumpkin to eat/freeze you need the small 'pie pumpkins'.

Here is one of my favorite sites demonstrating how to cook a pumpkin. I figure they explain it so well no since in me re-inventing the wheel:

Pumpkin Patches and More

Although our family does not get into the spooky Halloween stuff, we do enjoy the blessings of the harvest season. Personally, I like my pumpkins un-carved (they last much longer), but I know a lot of people have fun carving their pumpkins. Here is a little devotion/poem to do with your little ones if you carve.

Pumpkin Prayer

Cut Off the Top
Lord open my mind and fill me with your wisdom and guidance.

Scoop Out the Yukies:
Lord, take out all my fussies and frownies and fill me with Your love.

Carve Out the Eyes:
Lord, open my eyes to see all of the beautiful things You have made.

Carve Out the Nose:
Lord, help me to be a sweet fragrance for You.

Carve Out the Mouth:
Lord, help me to always speak Your words of love and kindness.

Place in a Candle:
Lord, let me be a light to others for You have filled me with Your light.

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Choosing a Pumpkin

Pumpkins are gourds and are in the family that also includes squash and cucumbers.

Choose pumpkins that are firm and have a rich color.

Pumpkins should resist scratching, test this with your scraping your fingernail on it.

Be sure they have no cracks or soft spots.

Small pumpkins are for pies and other dishes.

An un-carved pumpkin will last about two months.

Rub clove oil on your pumpkins to keep the gnats and bees away from them.