ALL THINGS PUMPKIN
by duluth, October 28, 2009 | Permalink
Autumn is orange. It is the bright pop of the leaves as they dot the trees that line up “Apple Alley” into Ellijay. It is the color of a lick of flame at a bonfire with s’mores on the menu. It is one of the colors sported by fans of my favorite football team.
And it’s especially pumpkins.
At Whole Foods Market Johns Creek, the throbbing red heirloom tomato has surrendered center stage to the opulently orange pumpkin. We’ve got stacks of them, ready to be cut and carved into whatever design budding pumpkin Picassos can create. Our carving pumpkins are still 3 for $12, so you can get one for each member of the family and still have some left over for a harvest vignette on the front porch. It’s a veritable Pumpkinpalooza of varieties—little warty pumpkins, petite baking pumpkins, even white pumpkins. On Halloween—yes, this Saturday–from 11 am to 3 pm the whole family can get in on the act. You can taste recipes made with variations on all things pumpkin, and the kids can wear their costumes and partake in some nifty crafts. And since all this festivity ends at 3 pm, you can get home in time for the Georgia-Florida kickoff and whip up the recipe for Pumpkin Seed Pesto. Whether you’re tailgating or parked in front of the big screen, this pesto is easy to make and spread across some good crusty bread. You can also smear it on a sandwich, toss it with pasta or serve it over roasted or steamed vegetables. It’s the third-most popular recipe on our website!
Pumpkin Seed Pesto
2 cups unsalted hulled (green) pumpkin seeds
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
Salt and pepper to taste
¼ cup water
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, or to taste
3 garlic cloves
1 cup roughly chopped fresh cilantro
Preheat oven to 375˚. Toss pumpkin seeds with 2 tablespoons of the oil and salt and then spread in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Roast until seeds are puffed and fragrant—10 to 15 minutes—then set aside to cool.
Combine seeds in a food processor with water, lemon juice, garlic, cilantro and remaining 4 tablespoons oil. Pulse until mixture forms a coarse paste, then season with salt and pepper. Cover and chill until ready to use. Makes about 2 ½ cups.
Flooded Farms Relief Fund update: A gigantic THANK YOU to everyone who shopped in the store and our Farmer’s Market, bought lunch at our grill or won a bid at our silent auction last Wednesday. Our store raised $4,370 dollars for the Slow Food Atlanta’s Flooded Farms Relief Fund. In total the Atlanta stores raised almost $24,000. We’re continuing our “Donate your Dime” program to aid the Fund through October 31st, so be sure to come down and help out your fellow Atlantans recover. If you’d like more information please visit www.slowfoodatlanta.org.
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