Devon’s Stuffed Pumpkins

Submitted by: DEVON A. MIHESUAH, member of the Choctaw Nation, a historian, and writer

Their Food Story:

Pumpkins are a quintessential American fruit. There are many types of winter squashes, but the orange pumpkin is the melon that for many Americans conjures images of Halloween, spice lattes, and Thanksgiving pie. Indigenous peoples from South America to Canada have cultivated pumpkins for millennia. They remain a source of sustenance and symbols of our culture. Historically, tribes roasted squashes over fires or dried them to store for the winter months. I always look forward to the fall harvest when I can use pumpkins as decorative and nutritious containers for my garden bounty.

This recipe uses only pre-contact ingredients. For the last decade, I have hosted the “Week of Indigenous Eating” challenge from my Facebook page, Indigenous Eating. Participants can choose to eat only pre-contact foods from their tribe for a week. If ingredients are difficult to find, they can expand their choices to the entire hemisphere. This dish utilizes ingredients my tribe used (except cranberries that are from the Northeast). But as you can see, this concept offers the possibility of adding many post-contact spices, meats and cheeses.

Stuffed Pumpkins

Ingredients:

• 2 (1) pound pumpkins

Filling

• 2-3 yellow squash, chopped

• 2-3 zucchini, chopped

• 2 cups yellow, orange and red bell peppers

• 1-2 cups sliced mushrooms

• 2 large sliced tomatoes

• ½ c chopped sweet onion

• 1 c goosefoot leaves (if available)

• 4T dried cranberries (set aside)

• Other possibilities: Wild rice, Quinoa, Sweet potato, Green chilies, Jalapenos, Ground turkey or venison
  
  

Instructions:

Prepare the Pumpkins - Pick pumpkins that weigh approximately 1 pound. Pie and sugar pumpkins are a good size. You also can use other large winter squashes as vessels.

Cut the tops off so that you have “lids” that can be replaced.

Scoop out the seeds and the stringy portions.

Use a paper towel and lightly coat the insides with vegetable oil.

Preheat oven at 350 degrees and cook on cookie sheet until the outer skin is lightly tender. This takes about 30-50 minutes. Remove pumpkins from oven and set aside.

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Heat 2T vegetable oil (I use grapeseed oil) in a skillet over medium heat.

Cover the pan with one layer of vegetables, sprinkle with a favored condiment such as pepper, salt, or onion powder then cook over medium heat and turn after two minutes.

Turn to low, cover and simmer until vegetables are tender.

After vegetables are tender, mix in cranberries, then pack into the pumpkins and bake at 350 for one hour.

You can eat the meat of the pumpkin along with the inside ingredients. You might like a drizzle of maple syrup over the top.