There has been a nip in the air for a few weeks now. If you follow our Facebook page or Instagram, you’ll know already that Kate and I are both excited about the change in season. I love the cooler fall weather for baking and everything that comes with it. Here in Michigan, the leaves are just starting to put on their fall fashion show of brightly colored leaves. School is back in session for all the little people in our lives. Some big people are also back to school (Kate’s husband teaches at the local university). However, the best thing about fall is is that it is pumpkin season!

Now before you start cracking pumpkin spice jokes, know that I love pumpkin freshly roasted with only butter and salt. Though I do love a good pumpkin pie or pumpkin spice cake (Kate made an AMAZING one), I prefer my gourds served savory. So when Kate suggested an Autumn Equinox beach bonfire, I started thinking about what I could make with pumpkins over an open fire. I settled on a savory  pumpkin stew we could bake in the coals of the campfire using the pumpkin itself as the cooking vessel.

Savory pumpkin stew is a delicious mix of sausage, vegetables, onions, and wild rice. I also add in brown rice to my mix to lighten it up a bit. Heavy cream (or non-dairy alternative) and chicken broth are added in with herbs, salt, pepper, and whatever else you want to throw in. The whole concoction is spooned into a pumpkin, wrapped in tinfoil, and placed into the glowing hot coals of a campfire. Alternately, it can also be made in the oven if you don’t have access to a campfire. Another reason I chose this recipe is that it is adaptable for different tastes and dietary needs. It is gluten free and can be easily made dairy free, as well.

For the recipe I needed some of the small pie pumpkins. You can make the stew in a large pumpkin, but I personally feel the pie pumpkins are more flavorful. In addition to taste, you can make each pumpkin have a different twist. Bacon in one. Mushrooms in another. One without dairy or even a vegan one. The possibilities are endless.  My own garden was not very productive when it came to gourds this year, or much of anything. Luckily, there was a good selection of pie pumpkins at our local farmer’s market. I also grabbed a couple of acorn squash to experiment with.

The Importance of Preparation

When you are baking away from home, be kind to yourself. Always prepare as much as you can ahead of time.

Also never assume that the location you have will have anything you need for baking. Bring all you will need with you. With this in mind, I cooked the turkey sausage, vegetables, and wild/brown rice mix ahead of time and packed them in containers. I could and should have also prepped the pumpkins, but did not want to leave Kate out of the fun. What better way to bond as friends than gutting gourds together?

Campfire Baking

We arrived at the beach and scouted out the perfect fire spot, set up a ring of stones, and set to work collecting fallen wood. To bake over a fire you need a good bed of coals.  This takes time. Always start your fire first so it will be ready.

Savory Pumpkin Stew Recipe

4 small/ medium pie pumpkins or acorn squash

1 c wild rice

1 c brown rice

4 c water

1 lb of turkey sausage

1 c carrots peeled, sliced

½ c celery chopped

1 small yellow onion, diced

1 tsp salt

½ tsp garlic powder

½ tsp pepper

1 tsp ground sage

1 tsp dried oregano

½ c heavy cream or a non dairy substitute

1 c chicken broth

butter or cooking spray

HEAVY DUTY Tinfoil

Directions

1. Cook the rice according to the directions until tender and all the water is absorbed.
2. Wash the pumpkins and cut off the tops. Scrape the seeds and goop out until the pumpkin flesh is clean. Rinse, dry, and rub with salt and butter set aside.
3. Cook the turkey sausage until browned, drain.
4. Add in the chopped veggies and a splash of chicken broth. Cook until tender (about 10 minutes).
5. In a large bowl combine the rice, sausage and vegetables.
6. Add the salt, garlic powder, pepper, thyme, and oregano, stir all the
7. Spoon mixture into the pumpkins.
8. Divide the chicken broth between pumpkins
9. Divide and pour cream into each of the pumpkins.
10. Replace the tops on the pumpkins.
11. Coat a large sheet of tinfoil with butter or cooking spray for each pumpkin. Wrap each pumpkin tightly in the greased foil, greased side in.
12. Place the pumpkins on the bed of coals and cook for about 30 minutes or until they are able to be pierced easily with a knife.
13. Remove from the fire with a large pair of grilling tongs. Cool for 5 to 10 minutes.
14. Serve in bowls making sure to include some pumpkin flesh.
15. Enjoy!

Additions: I had a small amount of morel mushrooms I had collected and dried this past spring. I reconstituted them in some red wine and added them into three of the pumpkins with a splash of red wine.

What I did learn on this recipe adventure was to make sure you use the heavy duty foil and to check the pumpkins after about 20 minutes. In a bed of hot coals, the pumpkins baked up fast.

Test them with a knife or toasting fork for tenderness.

We lost some liquid due to the not so heavy duty tinfoil, and with it some of the flavors. However it still turned out delicious.

Sitting around the fire watching the sun set in the gathering clouds and the waves roll with full bellies was a wonderful evening. The children ran around finding unique rocks and digging in the sand.

If you haven’t tried campfire cookery, baked pumpkin stew is a good way to start. Give it a try and let us know what you think! We would love to hear your add-in ideas and recipe twists.