Homemade Pumpkin Puree Recipe

Homemade pumpkin puree takes one small pumpkin and a cup of water. The pumpkin is halved, seeded and baked cut side down in a shallow layer of water at 350°F until soft, then the flesh is scooped from the skin and blended smooth. A 3 to 4 pound pumpkin gives 2 to 3 cups of puree.

Look for a sugar pie pumpkin, the small baking kind, rather than one of the giant pumpkins sold for carving. Splitting it is the hardest part of the job; a cleaver makes it easier. The seeds can be set aside for roasting. Use the finished puree anywhere a recipe calls for canned pumpkin, such as pumpkin pecan bread or pumpkin butter.

Pumpkin puree keeps only in the refrigerator or freezer. Home canning is not recommended for any mashed or pureed pumpkin, so freeze what will not be used within a few days, in 1 3/4-cup portions that match a 15-ounce can.

Homemade Pumpkin Puree

Sugar pie pumpkin halves baked in a little water at 350°F until tender, then processed into a smooth, lump-free puree. Yields 2 to 3 cups.

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 45 minutes mins

Servings: 2 cups

Course: Pantry Staple

Cuisine: American

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 1 small sugar pie pumpkin 3 to 4 pounds
• 1 cup cold water more if needed

Method

 

1. Heat the oven to 350°F.
2. Cut the pumpkin in half from stem to base and scoop out the seeds and stringy fibers.
3. Arrange the two halves, cut sides facing down, in a 9×13-inch baking dish, then pour in the cold water. The water should reach roughly 1/4 inch up the pumpkin; top it up if it falls short.
4. Bake for 60 to 75 minutes, until the skin gives when pressed and a fork slides easily into the thickest part of the flesh.
5. Leave the halves in the dish until they are cool enough to handle, about 15 minutes.
6. Spoon the flesh away from the skins and into a blender or food processor. Process until the puree is smooth with no lumps.
7. Cool the puree quickly by spreading it in shallow containers or setting the bowl in cold water and stirring now and then. Cover and refrigerate it within 2 hours of taking the pumpkin out of the oven.
8. Use the refrigerated puree within 3 days, or freeze it.

Notes

Makes 2 to 3 cups of pumpkin puree.

Baking time depends on the size and thickness of the pumpkin; go by tenderness rather than the clock.

The pumpkin to buy is the small sugar pie type, as opposed to a big carving pumpkin. A cleaver helps with cutting it in half.

Save the seeds for roasting.

Homemade puree is often wetter than canned. For a thicker puree, drain it in a sieve lined with cheesecloth or a thin towel, set over a bowl in the refrigerator, for about 30 minutes before measuring.

Freezing: pack the cooled puree into freezer containers or bags in 1 3/4-cup portions, the amount in a 15-ounce can, leaving 1/2 inch of headspace. Freeze for up to 3 months for the best quality, thaw in the refrigerator and stir back in any liquid that separates.

Do not can pumpkin puree at home, in a water bath or a pressure canner. Mashed or pureed pumpkin is too dense for heat to reach the center of the jar reliably, and there is no tested home-canning process for it.