Make this homemade pumpkin puree to repurpose your porch pumpkins and add seasonal flare to your meal plan!
Pumpkin season is almost over and there will sadly be many pumpkins rotting on porches and in landfills within the next month. If your pumpkins are still in good shape, I encourage you to turn them into something delicious and edible instead of letting them go to waste. Making your own homemade pumpkin puree is the perfect way to give your porch pumpkins new life and add a little seasonal flare to your family’s dinner table.
Homemade Pumpkin Puree Recipe
This pumpkin puree can be used to make sweet & savory recipes: pumpkin spice lattes, pumpkin bread, pumpkin soup, pumpkin alfredo sauce, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin bars, pumpkin curry, pumpkin pie… I could go on and on and on.
It takes about an hour to an hour and a half (depending on the size of the pumpkin) to make puree and you can use it immediately or store it for long-term use.
Pumpkin Puree Ingredients
- Pumpkin (s)
- Olive Oil
Directions
STEP ONE: Preheat Oven
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
STEP TWO: Prepare the Pumpkin
Cut the pumpkin in half. Use a spoon to scoop out the seeds & stringy insides. Then place the pumpkin halves cut side down on your prepared baking sheet.
If you want to save the pumpkin seeds for planting or roasting, set them to the side so you can wash and dry them.
STEP THREE: Bake the Pumpkin
Bake the prepared pumpkin at 325 for 45-75 minutes.
Small varieties like sugar pumpkins will take around 45 minutes, large thin-walled pumpkins (like the typical carving pumpkin) will take 5-60 minutes, and large dense varieties like Fairytale will take closer to 75 minutes.
The pumpkins are ready to remove from the oven when the skin can be easily pierced with a fork.
STEP FOUR: Scoop the Cooked Pumpkin Flesh
Allow the baked pumpkin to cool enough so you don’t burn your fingers and then begin to scoop the flesh out. You can put the cooked pumpkin into a bowl or an airtight container to puree later or you can place it directly into the food processor to make homemade pumpkin puree.
STEP FIVE: Blend
To make your own pumpkin puree, you can mash the cooked pumpkin with a potato masher, add small amounts at a time to a blender, or use a food processor.
**I HIGHLY recommend investing in a food processor. I’m going to be honest, I never thought I needed a food processor, but then I tried making all of this homemade puree in a blender and it was taking for-ev-er! This processor was a huge time-saver!
Add the cooked pumpkin to the blender, bowl, or food processor and process (either by mashing, blending, or pureeing) until it is smooth.
STEP SIX: Use or Store
Your homemade pumpkin puree is now ready to use or be stored for later!
I like to keep a ½ pint jar in the fridge so I can scoop some into my coffee and my oatmeal in the mornings. I keep the rest in the freezer until I am ready to use it.
Keep the pumpkin puree in the fridge in an airtight container if you plan to use it within a week.
If you want to store your puree long-term, add it to a freezer bag, squeeze all the air out, flatten it in the bag, and freeze it.
You can also freeze homemade pumpkin puree in ice cube trays. Pop the cubes out and store them in a freezer bag. This option does take up more space than flattened freezer bags, however.
Recipe Notes:
- You can use any edible variety of pumpkin for this recipe, however, if you want the most bang for your buck, I recommend a dense heirloom pumpkin variety like Fairytale.
The Best Pumpkin Varieties for Pumpkin Puree:
If you are growing your own pumpkins or purchasing pumpkins to make pumpkin puree, consider the variety before getting started.
I recommend a pumpkin with dense flesh. See the images below for a visual example of how different each pumpkin variety is. A simple sugar pie pumpkin is great for puree, but you will need several of them if you want enough to store for later.
You can also use your carving pumpkins, BUT they aren’t the best option since they tend to have less flesh in favor of a large inner cavity.
My top choice for homemade pumpkin puree? The Fairytale Pumpkin (Musquee de Provence). Hands-down. It is large, heavy, and VERY dense with a sweet deep orange flesh. One pumpkin will make enough puree to use now and to store for later.
Other great options are heirloom varieties like Jarrahdale Pumpkins and Long Island Cheese Pumpkins.
Favorite Pumpkin Recipes:
Use this delicious pumpkin puree to make these pumpkin desserts and savory dishes.
Spiced Pumpkin Bread
This homemade pumpkin bread is incredible as a breakfast treat with coffee or as a sweet dessert!
How to Can Pumpkin
Don’t want to turn all of your pumpkins into puree? Try canning some of your uncooked pumpkins!
Pumpkin Alfredo for Pasta & Spaghetti Squash
Add fall flavors to pasta night with this creamy pumpkin alfredo!
Pumpkin Spice Coffee Creamer
Recipe coming soon…
Print the “Homemade Pumpkin Puree” Recipe Card
Homemade Pumpkin Puree
Ingredients
- Pumpkin
- Olive Oil
Instructions
STEP ONE: Preheat Oven
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
STEP TWO: Prepare the Pumpkin
Cut the pumpkin in half. Use a spoon to scoop out the seeds & stringy insides. Then place the pumpkin halves cut side down on your prepared baking sheet.
STEP THREE: Bake the Pumpkin
Bake the prepared pumpkin at 325 for 45-75 minutes.
Small varieties like sugar pumpkins will take around 45 minutes, large thin-walled pumpkins (like the typical carving pumpkin) will take 5-60 minutes, and large dense varieties like Fairytale will take closer to 75 minutes.
The pumpkins are ready to remove from the oven when the skin can be easily pierced with a fork.
STEP FOUR: Scoop the Cooked Pumpkin Flesh
Allow the baked pumpkin to cool enough so you don’t burn your fingers and then begin to scoop the flesh out. You can put the cooked pumpkin into a bowl or an airtight container to puree later or you can place it directly into the food processor.
STEP FIVE: Blend
Add the cooked pumpkin to the blender, bowl, or food processor and process (either by mashing, blending, or pureeing) until it is smooth.
STEP SIX: Use or Store
Your homemade pumpkin puree is now ready to use or be stored for later!
Keep the pumpkin puree in the fridge in an airtight container if you plan to use it within a week.
If you want to store your puree long-term, add it to a freezer bag, squeeze all the air out, flatten it in the bag, and freeze it.
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