Amanda Miller
Columnist
Lettuce Eat Local

Zucchini spice latte, anyone? What about a nice gingersnap cucumber cheesecake? Still no takers, hm, we could always do a squash custard pie. 

You probably see what I’m doing here — we are all about pumpkin sweets and pumpkin spice treats this time of year, but the rest of the curcubita family don’t get much love, at least not on the dessert table. 

There is at least one legitimate reason. Seasonality obviously matters, and fall harvest crops are better for, you know, fall, instead of the summer ones. I was thinking I was going to have more excuses for having pumpkin-colored glasses, but I’m struggling. I admit, there could be issues with a cucumber cheesecake, and I myself might balk slightly at the idea, yet I think it could be done with some open-minded recipe development. 

A “ZSL” has all the catchiness of a PSL, if not more; and I’ve definitely made squash custard pie before, both spaghetti squash and butternut squash versions. In fact, chances are that you have made squash pie too, since somehow it is legal to label a variety of canned squashes as canned pumpkin. (Pumpkins are a type of squash, but not all squashes are pumpkins.) 

I just find it interesting that we decided pumpkins should be almost exclusively utilized for sweet purposes. I’m as much a sucker for pumpkin-spiced anything as the next person — even though that simple terminology is annoying to me, since pumpkins are not spiced. They are also not inherently sweeter than other curcubits (except for melons, which I have conveniently omitted from this discussion…). Pumpkins’ sugar content is actually lower than other types like butternut, acorn, and delicata, not to mention lesser-known ones that actually sound sweet like carnival, honeynut, and sweet dumpling. 

In all this, I can’t be mad at however we use pumpkins, because I love them; plus how handy is it to have food that doubles as inside and/or outside decoration! We store them on porch steps and end tables…until we eat them. Oh, they work as kids’ chairs and toys, too, and Kiah loves to stumble around the house transporting pumpkins for unspecified reasons. 

I just think it’s time we branch out, making it more mainstream to use other winter squashes in cakes and pies, and work at accessing more of the pumpkin’s savory side. It’s not that it isn’t being done; I just encourage even more of it. I love meaty chunks of pumpkin within dishes like stews or roasted vegetables: not just pureed into things, but highlighting its own flavor too. 

Perhaps I’m inclined towards savory pumpkin for personal reasons as well, as I’ll never forget that the last recipe I submitted before my husband’s farming accident seven years ago was for chili-spiced sauteed pumpkin. That newspaper article found its way to the SICU waiting room after my first-of-many nights spent there, and the leftovers rotted in the fridge in the intervening weeks before I went home again. 

It might seem like an odd recipe to be sentimental about, yet even though thinking about it makes me feel sick to my stomach and I plan to never make it again, the memory fills my soul with deep thanksgiving. Our stories will always be full of the sweet and the salty, when our gratitude often mixes with our tears; if we go around the table saying what we’re thankful for this Thanksgiving, I’m not being trite or cliche if I say family. 

On a different level, I’ll mean it too if I say pumpkin pie, even if I secretly wish it were buttercup squash pie. 

Greens Salad with Roasted Pumpkin

With all the rich, heavy food typically on a Thanksgiving table, it’s always nice if there’s a fresh salad too. While I’m actually the one making pumpkin pie for our family’s celebration, I might cut up an extra pumpkin to dice and roast to have available for leftover-turkey salads. Like for essentially any vegetable (even though I know pumpkins are botanically fruits), a high-heat roast amplifies pumpkins’ natural flavor within, providing a nice flavor and texture complement to the rest of this salad. 

Prep tips: we had just the last few garden-rescued tomatoes to use…but if you don’t have homegrown, probably skip them this time of year and use another flavorful addition like roasted (or pickled!) beets or sweet red peppers.

1 small pumpkin, peeled and diced

salad greens of choice: lettuce, spinach, kale, etc

a couple tomatoes, large-diced and salted

queso fresco, ricotta, or other crumbly white cheese

salted roasted pumpkin seeds

simple vinaigrette: olive oil, balsamic vinegar, local honey, salt

Toss pumpkin with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and roast at 425° until browning and roasty, about half an hour. Let cool, then refrigerate (and/or enjoy some as a fresh hot side with a meal). 

Assemble salad by layering on all ingredients, saving extra pumpkin for another use. Season with salt and pepper. 

Lettuce Eat Local is a weekly local foods column by Amanda Miller, who lives in rural Reno County on the family dairy farm with her husband and two small children. She seeks to help build connections through food with her community, the earth, and the God who created it all. Send feedback and recipe ideas to [email protected].