Low Nickel Pumpkin Puree
The abundance of winter squashes in the fall, all of which are low in nickel, make them perfect for baking and cooking. Since most processed pumpkin purees are stored in stainless steel cans, I’ve started pureeing small baking pumpkins at home.
Ingredients
- 2 small baking pumpkins
- Sea salt
Instructions
- First preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and set it aside.
- Next wash the outside of the pumpkins. Then cut the pumpkins in half, with the stem and the base on opposite sides of the halves and cut off each pumpkin's stem.
- Use a spoon or ice cream utensil to scoop out the seeds and the stringy flesh.
- Afterwards, lightly sprinkle the pumpkin pulp or insides with sea salt and place the pumpkins flesh down on the baking sheet, so the hard bottoms are up. Bake the pumpkins for 30-45 minutes or until the skin is soft enough to pierce using a fork.
- Take the pumpkins out of the oven and let them cool on the baking sheet for 15-30 minutes. Once the pumpkins are cool enough to touch, peel the skin off using a fork or carefully using your fingers. Lastly place the soft pumpkin flesh in a large bowl and mash it with a potato masher or if you prefer use an immersion blender or regular blender to puree the pumpkin. Store your pumpkin puree in a sealed glass container in the refrigerator.
- Use a hand held potato masher or an immersion blender to mash or puree the pumpkin.
Notes
I store my nickel free pumpkin puree in glass Pyrex containers in the refrigerator. I’ve read you can freeze it, however I’ve never frozen my pumpkin puree, as I use to bake pies and breads almost immediately!