Delicious Baked Stuffed Pumpkin

Baked Stuffed Pumpkin is an easy recipe to make and impressive to serve. It’s a versatile one-pumpkin dish that uses a hollowed out pumpkin as a baking vessel. It’s filled with a delicious stuffing made of bread, sausage, cheese, and a custard to hold everything together. So easy to make for a family weekday dinner and fancy enough for a company meal.

Cinderella may have ridden in a pumpkin, but she has nothing on me. Bibbidi-bobbidi-boo I stuff pumpkins and create culinary magic with them in my kitchen. I’ve had so many readers write and comment because they could not find my original stuffed pumpkin recipe. I’m not exactly sure what happened to some of my older recipes. Maybe it was an evil spell, but they disappeared, and my stuffed pumpkin recipe was one of them.

So, today, I’m sharing the same recipe in a new and updated post with more information and ideas.

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What Is A Baked Stuffed Pumpkin

A baked stuffed pumpkin, sometimes known as a roasted stuffed pumpkin, is a fresh pumpkin that has been hollowed out and filled with bread, other delicious ingredients, and a custard. Then it is baked in the oven until the stuffing is hot and the pumpkin flesh is tender.

Baked Stuffed Pumpkin has a soft texture and is very flavorful!

This makes a fascinating and stunning presentation at any dinner table! So, this recipe is perfect for Thanksgiving.

How To Pick A Pumpkin To Bake

Find the freshest pumpkin you can. No pumpkins from your front porch that have been sitting there since September. The best pumpkins are sugar pumpkins, which are the same orange pumpkins that are used to make pumpkin pie or a jack-o-lantern. Choose a pumpkin that is heavy for its weight. Pumpkins that seem light may be old and beginning to dry out. Pass those up.

Check pumpkins for any blemishes or spots and check that their bottoms are not soggy. Basically, you are looking for the most perfect pumpkin you can find since you will be eating the flesh inside it.

For the post today, I sent Bobby to our local farmstand to find “a heavy pumpkin about the size of his head.” And he did!

What You Will Need

There are so many delicious things you can add to a stuffed baked pumpkin! For this stuffing, here’s what you will need…

Tips For The Best Stuffed Pumpkin

Carve about 1/4 to 1/3 the way down the pumpkin to make the lid or top. This is important so there is enough room to put the ingredients inside and take the cooked stuffing out of the pumpkin.

Only use the freshest pumpkins. If the inside of the pumpkin looks gray, has an off-putting odor, or is very watery, discard the pumpkin and cook the stuffing in a greased oven-proof dish until done.

You can stuff a pumpkin with so many different things. Just make sure the things you put inside the pumpkin are cooked, if they are vegetables or meat. The bread, herbs, cheese, and cream in this recipe can go in as they are.

Use herbs like fresh thyme and parsley in the stuffing.

Stir all the ingredients together in a large mixing bowl.

Pack the pumpkin to the very top with the stuffing mix and dot the stuffing with butter.

Put the rack of your oven in the lowest position.

Put the pumpkin on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet or a silicone mat. Roll up a couple lengths of foil to make a collar around the base of the pumpkin so it does not slide around or wobble too much.

Cook the pumpkin with the top on. If the pumpkin does not fit inside your oven, put the top beside the pumpkin cut side down. And cover the top of the pumpkin with foil.

Can I Eat The Pumpkin

Pumpkins are a member of the squash family. Pumpkins are also known as winter squash. Yes, you can eat the flesh inside the pumpkin. It’s delicious and healthy for you. Just scoop it out along with the stuffing and enjoy.

5 from 1 vote

Delicious Baked Stuffed Pumpkin

A meal in a pumpkin.

Print Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 3-5 lb sugar pumpkin
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 lb sausage bulk sage sausage or Italian
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 6 cups day old bread, cubed
• 8 oz gruyere cheese, grated
• 1 tsp thyme, leaves only
• 1/2 cup heavy cream or half and half
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• pinch nutmeg, freshly grated
• salt and pepper
• 2 Tbs butter, cubed

Instructions

• Adjust the oven rack to its lowest position and preheat it to 350°.
• Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Remove the sausage from its casing and cook it in a large pan, breaking it up until done. Remove the sausage to a large plate.
• In the same pan, sautee the onions over medium-low heat until translucent. Add the minced garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes.
• While the sausage is cooking, wash, dry, and carve the pumpkin. Cut the top of the pumpkin off and scoop out the insides, leaving the flesh of the pumpkin wall intact.
• Salt and pepper the inside of the pumpkin.
• In a large bowl, mix the sausage, onion, garlic, cubed bread, cheese and thyme.
• Add the nutmeg, egg, and Dijon mustard to the cream in a measuring cup and whisk until everything is incorporated.
• Add the cream to the bread mixture and combine. The bread should be moist. Add more cream if needed.
• Salt and pepper the stuffing to taste.
• Stuff the pumpkin with the bread all the way to the top.
• Dot the top of the stuffing with butter.
• Put the pumpkin on a foil-lined baking sheet. Put a foil collar around the base of the pumpkin. Put the top on the pumpkin. If the pumpkin will not fit in your oven put the cap next to the pumpkin and cover the pumpkin with foil.
• Bake for about 90 minutes, depending on the size. Take the top or foil off the pumpkin 30 minutes before it is done.
• When the pumpkin is done, put the pumpkin on a large plate or platter.
• To serve, scoop out the stuffing with the flesh of the pumpkin. Or, cut the pumpkin into slices.

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FAQs About Stuffed Baked Pumpkin

Can you roast a pumpkin without the stuffing?

Roasting a pumpkin is easy. Slice the top of the pumpkin off and scoop out the seeds. Drizzle the inside of the pumpkin with olive oil. Salt and pepper the inside of the pumpkin. Put the pumpkin on a lined baking sheet and bake at 350° until the flesh is soft. A 3-5 pound pumpkin takes about 30-40 minutes. You can also slice the pumpkin and follow the directions above.

What can I do with the seeds?

Pumpkin seeds make a wonderful snack. Preheat your oven to 350°. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Clean the pumpkin seeds by putting them in a colander and run them under cold water to get rid of all the stringy bits. You may have to pull some of the strings off of the pumpkin seeds with your finders. Dry the seeds on a paper towel and put them into a medium-sized bowl. Add a couple tsp of olive oil to the bowl, salt, and your favorite dry seasonings like garlic powder, paprika, or chili powder to taste. Put the seeds on the baking sheet and spread them out. Bake for 10-20 minutes, stirring once until the seeds are slightly golden around the edges. Cool and eat.

Do you peel a pumpkin before baking?

If you are baking a whole pumpkin there is no need to peel it. If you want cubes of roasted pumpkin, then you should peel the skin off the pumpkin,

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