Shortage of Libby’s is another thumbs up for fresh pumpkin

I’ve never really liked pumpkin pie. Sacrilegious, I know. I prefer a yummy spiced persimmon cake or traditional Dutch Apple. But even I know that Thanksgiving just isn’t Thanksgiving without that creamy, cinnamonny, burnt orange treat to top off the feasting.

That’s why the news of Nestle’s canned pumpkin shortage is so very sad. Nestle apparently controls 85% of the pumpkin canning crop concentrated in 5,000 acres of pumpkin fields in Morton, Illinois. An already small harvest of Sweet Dickenson pumpkins has been pummeled by heavy rains, which have waterlogged the squash to the point that they’re no longer suitable for processing.

The impact won’t hit this year in most cases since many stores are stocked from last year’s harvest, but come Turkey Day 2010, we may be feeling the effects of this year.

I guess that’s one of the drawbacks of putting all your eggs in one basket (or in this case, pumpkins in one midwest town).

Anyway, if you’re one to think ahead, maybe this year is the year to start practicing your fresh pumpkin pie making skillz. It’s certainly more work than opening up a can of Libby’s, but it’s also a fun project.

A roundup of puree recipes around the web yields the following basic advice (pictures to follow shortly once I get ’round to picking up my own pie pumpkin):

1) Choose a small pumpkin and look for a sugar pumpkin rather than the decoration variety. Smaller pumpkins will likely have less water and will be less fibrous which will result in a smoother, more consistent finished product. You can also substitute hubbard, butternut, or acorn squash OR sweet potatoes especially if you’re making puree for a pie.

2) Chop your pumpkin in half or into four manageable pieces. Remove the seeds and fiber with a spoon. You can save the seeds for roasting or for planting your own pumpkins next year!

3) You can bake or steam the pumpkin. To steam, place pumpkin in a steaming basket with 2 inches of water and cook for approximately 30 minutes, or until the pumpkin is totally tender.  To bake, preheat your oven to 350 degrees, line a baking sheet with foil, and place your pumpkin pieces flesh-side down. Bake for about 60 minutes, or until the pumpkin can be scooped with a spoon.

4) Let cool, remove the skin and chop into pieces. Puree the pieces in a food processor or blender.

5) At this point, you’ll want to check out your product. Is it smooth? Stringy? Watery? For most recipes, you’ll want the puree to have the consistency of baby food. If your product is too watery, you can cook it down in a pan over medium-low heat with a little bit of butter or you can strain it through a cheesecloth for a few hours. If too stringy, try mashing through a sieve.