I baked my first pumpkin maybe 30 years ago, when we never got around to carving a Halloween jack-o-lantern. Since then I've baked with several different pumpkin varieties. I never thought to drain the purée, though; I'll definitely do that next time. What other uses are there for the drained juice? There's a farm about an hour away from us that sells several different varieties; the first thing they ask when you say you want a pumpkin is "for carving or baking?" They then lead you to the appropriate display area. Blue pumpkins and cinderellas both make great purée - very meaty!

• Reply