I love fall. The colours of the leaves, the temperature dips into that perfect “running weather” range,
and there are many delicious flavours incorporated into seasonal restaurant
menus. One of my favorite fall foods is pumpkin, it is so versatile and healthy!
One cup of canned pumpkin
has only 80 calories, 7 grams of fiber and 1 gram of fat. It also contains a
whopping 760% daily intake vitamin A (thanks to its beautiful orange color),
17% vitamin C, 6% calcium and 19% iron. While fresh roasted pumpkin is best, let’s be
honest here, the canned stuff is way more convenient and easy to use. Be sure
to buy 100% pumpkin with no added salt. Don’t get canned pumpkin confused with
canned “pumpkin pie filling”, which contains added sugar, spices and preservatives.
Pumpkin seeds are also extremely healthy, chocked full of healthy essential
fatty acids, zinc, magnesium and protein They are great toasted on salads,
sprinkled on top of quick breads or added to homemade granola/trail mix.
Here are a few different uses for pumpkin. **I am not a food blogger, so go ahead and make fun of the quality of my photos, I do have a life, and a Master's to complete...
1. Spicy Pumpkin Thai Soup! This bowl of soup was made using the Spicy Pumpkin Tofu Soup recipe from the
Planet Organic Cookbook
http://www.planetorganic.ca/goodfood/recipecorner/soup/spicypumpkintofusoup.
2.
Pumpkin “ice cream” This turned out to be way more delicious than I thought. I
made ice cream using two frozen, sliced bananas pureed in my food processor and added
a scoop of pumpkin and a sprinkle of cinnamon. I served it with a small dollop
of organic Greek yogurt, again totally optional. It made a great late night
treat to enjoy while watching Master Chef (amazing show BTW).
3.
Pumpkin Muffins, these moist pumpkin muffins were made using the recipe
from a food blog, Wellness Mama. http://wellnessmama.com/3655/pumpkin-bread-and-muffins-coconut-flour/
I
LOVE using coconut flour, which you can buy at any health food store or
sometimes even your local bulk store.
4.
Pumpkin Bread in a bowl- another amazing recipe from the beautiful and talented
Vegan Dessert Blogger Chocolate Covered Katie, http://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/2011/09/29/pumpkin-bread-in-a-bowl/
This
was a delicious breakfast pre-workout this morning, I used Nature’s Path Mesa
Sunrise Flakes and added a banana and some cinnamon for extra flavour and energy. I have also made overnight oats in a jar and added a scoop
of pumpkin for added flavor. Google “overnight oats in a jar” if you have no
idea what I am talking about
5.
My ULTIMATE go to pumpkin recipe, quinoa pumpkin pancakes from Quinoa 365. http://blogs.babble.com/family-kitchen/2010/10/14/quinoa-pumpkin-pancakes/
This
no fail recipe is a crowd pleaser and makes a HUGE batch. I freeze the pancakes
in a giant container, take a few out the night before, and pop them in my
toaster for a crispy, quick breakfast. I’m not a fan of added sugars, so I top
mine with almond butter and banana or frozen berries thawed in the microwave instead
of the traditional butter and maple syrup shown in this picture. FYI, if you
are lactose-intolerant, I have made this recipe using “soured” almond milk
(almond milk with 1tbsp lemon juice) and it still tasted great.
If
you haven’t figured it out already, I am addicted to pumpkin. My next recipe
will be to try chocolate brownies with pumpkin, yum! If you live alone like me
and wonder how the heck do you get through an entire giant jar of pumpkin
without it spoiling, simple, freeze some. Pumpkin freezes very well, when you
unfreeze it, remove some of the excess liquid before using in baked goods
otherwise the consistency will be off.
New
to pumpkin? Start small. NO, ordering a Venti pumpkin spice latte with whipped
cream at Starbucks does not count. Instead, try a pumpkin soup at a restaurant
or add some pumpkin seeds to your salad at dinner.
Hope
you are inspired to get some pumpkin in your life J
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