On these slate gray mornings, pumpkins on doorsteps shine orange and bright, lighting a path to soup season. While Halloween’s jack-’o-lanterns grin with ghoulish delight for the night, their petite cousins, sugar pumpkins, are the base for the comforting dishes of winter. With names like Baby Pam, Autumn Gold, Ghost Rider and Cinderella, these sweet pumpkins are the fairest of them all.
Just the word pumpkin conjures pies, bars, breads and lattes, but these sugar varieties are the workhorses in my kitchen. Firmer than delicate butternut and delicata squash, their skins are tough to protect them for months of storage. When shopping at the farmers market and co-op, look for small pumpkins that are 3 to 5 pounds, free of bruises or soft spots. They should sound hollow when tapped, an indication that they’ve been “seasoned.”
Store pumpkins and other hard varieties of winter squash in a cool, dry place and they will keep for several months. Once pumpkins and the hard-skinned squashes have been cut, store the pieces unwrapped in the refrigerator. Plastic wrap encourages them to sweat and deteriorate more quickly. If the edges soften, slice off those bad pieces and discard before using the rest.
To prepare a pumpkin, the skin may be so hard that it might seem like you need an ax to split it open (no wonder pumpkins are nicknamed “ironbarks”). To begin, cut a thin slice from the base so that it stands firm, then whack it in half and scoop out the seeds and fibers with a spoon. You can rinse and dry the seeds for roasting with a little oil and salt. Roast the pumpkin halves until tender, and remove the peel once it’s cooled (see recipe).
The pumpkin’s dense flesh and bright color produces a mash with backbone for soup, stews, curries, risotto, breads, cakes, pies and pancakes. For peak pumpkin flavor, it’s a good idea to double the amount of pumpkin mash called for in a recipe. Freeze the extra, a bonus ingredient when you need to make dinner in a hurry.

Pumpkin Mash
Makes 2 to 3 cups.
Roasting pumpkins takes a bit of time, but is so easy, and the results are much tastier than canned pumpkin. Freeze the extra in a covered container for future use. From Beth Dooley.
- 2 small sugar pumpkins, about 3 lb. each
Directions