Doing fall right involves cooking at least one pumpkin.
After a few years of being “too busy” to partake in most seasonal activities, I’ve decided that’s no way to live.
So, I changed course. It’s part of my desire to make more room for pleasure and delight — for celebrating the little things.
Life is too short to miss out on the glorious annual mess that is cooking your autumn décor. Pumpkins are hard to slice, the goop is inconvenient, and the whole thing is so much more complicated than buying a can of puree, but there’s still something fun and rewarding about it.
It’s a way to literally dig your hands into the season and make something that’s only possible for one precious moment each year.
So, let’s do it! I invite you to join me. Take out a big knife, roll your sleeves up, and use your sugar pumpkin to whip up these classic pie and pudding recipes from my cookbook, Nourishing Your Whole Self: A Cookbook with Feelings.
Of course, if you’re not feeling it, you can absolutely still taste the season by preparing these desserts with canned pumpkin. You’ll miss some of the fun and mess, but the treat is just as tasty in the end.
Both these recipes embody the season, they’re not overwhelmingly sweet (the sugar is quite moderate), and I think they’re delicious.
Happy fall!