The Pumpkin Pie

Yes! Finally, the pumpkins are here! Aren't they beautiful? I've literally spent the entire day making various dishes with these lovelies. It  sometimes bothers me that Irish people don't really use pumpkins for anything other than jack-o-lanterns.  I have noticed a record number of said seasonal decorations all over Cork city, though, and they are gorgeous!


I've never been one to sit around lamenting and not doing anything so here is my pumpkin pie experience! I've put together a 'How To' style tutorial to show you what to do with your pumpkin when it's all big and orange and staring at you questioningly. The first step to any pumpkin recipe is to first purée the pumpkin. Once it's puréed, you can freeze it or use it for various recipes.

1. Slice your pumpkin in half, and then into slices. Scoop out the innard-goop and put it into a bowl. You can rinse them later and bake the seeds if you want to use every part of the pumpkin. The stringy bits are great for compost!

2. Place the pieces (skin intact!) into a steamer and steam for approximately 20 minutes until soft. Remove from the steamer and allow to cool before peeling. Do NOT try to peel the slices while they're hot! You WILL burn yourself.

3. Allow the skinless pumpkin chunks to drain in a colander for 10 minutes to get rid of excess juice. Sometimes this isn't necessary, if you feel your pumpkin isn't very watery, you can skip this step!

                                         

 4. Whizz up the pumpkin with a hand blender, or mash with a potato masher until it's a thick purée. Now you have your base ingredient, ready to use! If you have some left over, you can freeze it in a lunchbox or in small amount in freezer bags.

PUMPKIN PIE!

• 1 cup sugar
• 1.5 tsps cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground cloves
• 1 tsp ground allspice
• 0.5 tsp ground ginger
• 0.5 tsp salt (optional)
• 4 large, free range eggs
• 3 cups pumpkin purée
• 18 floz evaporated milk
  
  
  

1. Mix all ingredients together with a hand mixer. It will be a very wet mixture.





2. Line a pie dish with short crust pastry. I find that this recipe makes enough for at least one extra pie, so have some extra pastry to hand, just in case!

3. Pour in the pie-filling, not filling the dish more than 3/4 full, as the mixture will rise! Bake at 200 degrees Celsius for the first 15 minutes. 

4. Turn down the heat to 165 degrees Celsius and bake for a further 45 - 60 minutes, until a knife comes out clean from the centre.

When it is done, take it out and EAT IT UP, YUM YUM! :)






I hope you try this recipe! I originally found it online somewhere about two years ago and I've stuck with it. It's really delicious! I have a lovely recipe for pumpkin and spinach lasagne which I'll post soon. Let me know what you think! x

Coming tomorrow!

These last few weeks have been insane for me. Between work and traveling, I've barely had time to sit down. Between last Thursday and Tuesday I went from Cork -> London -> Gothenburg -> London -> Cork -> Dublin -> Cork with work from Tuesday evening to Thursday evening. So today (Friday) has been the first day that I've been able to go out and get some food shopping.

I BOUGHT PUMPKINS!!

Three of them. Beautiful little ones! I'm excited about making them into pies, soups, pasties and curry! It's been more than a year since my last Pumpkin Post. This time I promise to post recipes.

Horizontal Thinking

I'm in bed. It's WAY past my sleep-time but I'm just being stubborn. I feel like a useless lump because I'm ill so I haven't gone for a walk in.... weeks.

But I wanted to make a few notes:

• I am going to Sweden on Thursday and I have not thought about it AT ALL.
• I wrote and posted three letters today.
• I made 15 pairs of key earrings and three Wizard Rock tote bags.
• I have eaten one proper meal in the last three days. If I have not at least lost 2lbs, I will be most put out. It's the least this illness can do for me, really.
• I don't want to teach drama tomorrow.
• I hate spending money on clothes, but I really needed to. 
• And, in the last half an hour, I've actually felt hungry.

It occurred to me about an hour ago that I put pressure on myself to do things that I really shouldn't. I should worry that I miss a day of reading a book, or that I didn't get my room tidied today. Maybe I should make a list of the things that, if neglected, actually merit guilt. (Singing practice, piano practice, walking the dog...)

Pro.

Amy, please be professional. I don't know if you think about it enough in your singing. Be professional. Try not to be too bossy. :S

I think I am professional. It's how I roll? But I won't be running this show, for once.

For the Future.

Just a few thoughts before I turn off the light.

1. ALWAYS be humble. Don't ever do it in a false way. You are the same as everyone else, remember that. In fact, most people are actually better than you at most things.

2. Always be nice. No matter how much someone or something is irritating you to the point of explosion, save it for when you are in private with someone you trust. Get it out, get over it, move on. If you're mean in public it will come back to bite you in the ass.

3. Don't be someone you're not. Just stick to you.

4. Distractions are just that. You don't need to keep up with things on TV or YouTube - they just distract you from more important things.

5. Sing more. Sing always. Don't stop singing.

September Makes Me Insane

September approaches. It's the new school year, and for me that carries more meaning than the start of the calendar year. It's deeply rooted psychologically - the excitement, the new stationary, school bag, putting on your school uniform again. It's also the promise of something stable, secure and familiar - the routine of getting up, going out, doing things and coming home to relax.

OH HOW THINGS HAVE CHANGED! Well, to an extent. Now I work in the evenings, so I wake up in the morning and wait for the day to begin at 3.30pm. It does seem that I am learning how to do life on a very gradual basis. For example, this end-of-August I have quite a detailed schedule of work I do from waking up time until about 6pm, after which time I can read, watch TV or Skype my friends. (Mostly the latter.) This is so lovely, and so reassuring and just like the days of yore. In a way, I am a little but wary of going back to the routine of getting up and waiting to work.

At this time of the year I start to get anxious that I'm not fulfilling my potential, and that I'm basically wasting my life because of sheer laziness. This year, at least, I can take a step back and say to myself: 'No. I am working towards goals. I am doing as much as I can.' A lot of this feeling of inadequacy comes down to being distracted. I look after people and let them take my time, even when I have a defined schedule. At least I recognise this now, and I can work towards fixing it.

Does anyone else have a panic in late August/September? Or do you just think: "I WANT NEW STATIONARY!!!" (I think this too....)

Question.

If you love someone very much, and they love something very much, do you think it's your responsibility to engage with the thing? Like if it's a nerdy TV show, books, game, music, whatever?


I do.