Pumpkin with orange is a delicious combination, they were almpost made for each other
Whether it is baked with, as a soup, pureed; orange adds that extra oomph to the already marvelous flavour of the pumpkin
pumpkin half
1
pc
orange juice - with pulp
200
ml
butter
25
gm
pre-heat oven to 180C
carefully cut the pumpkin in half, horizontally along its equator (if using a round pumpkin) or in half lengthwise if using the elongated squash varieties
scoop out the seeds and the flesh strands attached to them ( I use a large tablespoon for this, that I have ground down on one edge, especially for jobs like this)
place the pumpkin onto a baking tray and pierce the flesh all over with the point of a sharp knife
add knobs of butter and pour in sufficient orange juice to fill the well in the middle of the pumpkin
season the flesh with sea salt and freshly milled pepper
place in to the oven and bake until the flesh is nicely soft, but not over softened, the juice and butter should have been absorbed into the flesh by now and the edges a lovely brown, ths browning really adds to the overallk flavour (if the juice totally evaporates partly during the cooking, more can be poured in if preferred)
remove from the oven, allow to cool slightly
to serve, cut into neat wedges (don't forget to try the peel, its delicious!)
chef notes
if your not into orange, try this same method plain or in place of orange juice try
a good strong flavoured vegetable or chicken stock
a good strong flavoured vegetable or chicken stock with chopped garlic
a hearty bovril and hot water mix
garlic butter
rather than cutting into wedges and serving with your meats etc of choice, how about
cook as above
remove from the oven, turn upside down and remove the peel, (which should come away very easily) or just scoop out the flesh
puree
this method of cookery intensifies the flavour wonderfully as a base for soups, pie etc
