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Cindy Silver, Registered Dietitian, LLC

Pumpkin in the Kitchen

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Local Pumpkins at the Farmer's Market There is nothing that says ‘fall’ more than pumpkins. Not only are they beautiful, but they come in very handy for healthy and tasty eats in the home kitchen.

I carve a smiling jack-o-lantern  each year for Halloween and then, a few weeks later, add it to my compost bin. The pumpkin that I cook with is simple, canned, solid pack pumpkin. It is easy-to-find at the grocery store, affordable and made from one, natural ingredient: pumpkin.

Almost everything tastes better with pumpkin added to it or made from it like pumpkin soup,  pumpkin muffins and pumpkin pie. Two of my  favorites are pumpkin pancakes and waffles. They can be made in a few, easy steps using a box of heart-smart/lower fat baking mix, nonfat milk and an egg. The basic recipe is on the side of the box. After mixing up the batter, add 1/2 to 1 cup of canned pumpkin and mix just a little more. Cook as usual on the waffle iron or on a flat skillet for pancakes. Then, finish it off with a little syrup or powdered sugar sprinkled on top. I like cut-up, fresh kiwi and turkey sausage links to balance my meal along with a glass of OJ, 1% milk or hot green tea.

Pumpkin adds a ton of flavor in the kitchen, but don’t overlook its powerful nutrition. Pumpkin is loaded with vitamin A, high in fiber and low in calories. It is fat free, cholesterol free and nearly sodium free. You can’t beat that!

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Susan Tague says

    Great photo!

    Our first year in Winston-Salem, I stopped at Maple Springs Church the day before Halloween to pick out a pumpkin. It was raining and they were trying to move the pumpkins. For $10 two elderly men loaded the back of my car with more pumpkins than we could possibly carve.

    I pared and boiled my haul and stored it in the freezer. I made lots of pumpkin goodies that year. Now I bake with pumpkin a lot. This is one of our favorites…

    Pumpkin Cookies

    1 cup butter, softened (Use 2 Tbsp of butter with light olive oil or canola oil to add up to a cup to save on fat calories.); 1 cup sugar; 1 cup pumpkin; 1 egg; 2 ½ cups bread or unbleached flour; 1 tsp baking soda; 2 tsp baking powder; 1 tsp cinnamon; ½ tsp nutmeg; 1 tsp vanilla

    Cream together butter and sugar. Add pumpkin, egg and vanilla. Mix well. Mix together dry ingredients and add to creamed mixture. Drop by the spoonful onto greased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-15 minutes at 350o. Cool.

  2. Cindy says

    Thank you for your pumpkin story and the fall cookie recipe, Susan! Next time you make the cookies, I suggest you try substituting unsweetened applesauce for half the butter/oil ingredient. In other words, use 1/2 cup butter (or 1/4 cup butter + 1/4 cup oil for less saturated fat)+ 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce. That will cut total fat and many calories from the cookies and I will be very surprised if they don’t taste just as delicious. I’ll be making your recipe, with healthy substitution sometime this week, so thanks in advance!

  4. Cindy says

    You’re welcome, Samantha! I hope these ideas lead you to yummy and healthy pumpkin dishes on the family table.

  7. Cindy says

    Thanks for your comments, Tony and Reeshof! Please stay tuned for related, educational tips on how to plan healthful meals, grocery shop with nutrition focus and cook simply and nutritiously at home.