3 delicious pumpkin recipes to impress your dinner party guests with this autumn
The burst of colour in the trees, the crunch of leaves, rosy cheeks and cosy clothing – it’s not hard to see why autumn’s a favourite season with the Arthur Price family!
Not to mention getting creative with pumpkins too! If making jack-o’-lanterns is a favourite activity in your home, have you thought about using them for something other than Halloween décor?
Throwing a seasonal dinner party is the perfect excuse to experiment with different recipes and use up your recently carved pumpkins. We’ll be trying out this trio of recipes this autumn – why don’t you join us?
Looking for that finishing touch? Give your dining table an elegant autumnal upgrade, try warm colours, foraged leaves and, of course, your favourite Arthur Price cutlery!
Starter: Creamy pumpkin soup
This indulgent soup is easy to whip up, and makes six servings – the perfect entrée to your autumnal feast!
Ingredients
- 15oz pure pumpkin purée
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 small white onion, chopped
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 tbsp firmly packed light brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp freshly ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp white pepper
- 1/4 tsp freshly ground nutmeg
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
- 3 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- Salt
- Crème fraîche, for garnish
- Crusty bread, to serve.
Technique
- In a large pot, melt the butter over a medium heat. Once beginning to brown, add the onion and sauté for 5 minutes.
- Time to add some spice! Add the garlic, sugar, cinnamon, pepper, nutmeg, and cayenne pepper, and cook for 3 minutes.
- Stir in the pumpkin purée and broth, season with salt, and bring to the boil.
- Lower the heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes. Stir in the cream and let cool for 10 minutes.
- Transfer the soup to a blender and purée until smooth. If needed, add additional water or broth to reach the desired consistency.
- Return the mixture to the pot or a large saucepan.
- Serve warm and drizzle with crème fraîche and crusty bread. Delicious!
Main course: Veggie pumpkin and chickpea curry
We adore this simply scrumptious veggie curry, which serves four people.
Ingredients
- 1 piece of pumpkin (about 1kg)
- 1 tbsp sunflower oil
- 3 tbsp Thai yellow curry paste, or vegetarian alternative
- 2 onions, finely chopped
- 3 large stalks lemongrass, bashed with the back of a knife
- 6 cardamom pods
- 1 tbsp mustard seed
- 250ml vegetable stock
- 400ml can reduced-fat coconut milk
- 400g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 2 limes
- Large handful mint leaves
- Naan bread, to serve.
Technique
- Heat the oil in a sauté pan, then gently fry the curry paste with the onions, lemongrass, cardamom and mustard seed for 2-3 mins until fragrant.
- Stir the pumpkin or squash into the pan and coat in the paste, then pour in the stock and coconut milk.
- Bring everything to a simmer, add the chickpeas, then cook for about 10 mins until the pumpkin is tender.
- Squeeze the juice of one lime into the curry, then cut the other lime into wedges to serve alongside.
- Just before serving, tear over mint leaves, then bring to the table with the lime wedges and warm naan breads.
Dessert: Indulgent pumpkin cheesecake
Pumpkin can also make a mouth-watering finale to any dinner party – and the proof is in this cheesecake pudding! This recipe takes a little more time to make (start the night before!), but it’s oh so worth it…
Ingredients
- 80g butter, melted
- Extra butter for the tin
- 275g ginger biscuits
- 1 large egg white (use the egg yolk in the filling, below).
For the filling
- 5 large eggs, plus 1 large yolk
- 800g full-fat soft cheese
- 425g pumpkin purée
- 200g light brown soft sugar
- 50g plain flour.
To serve
- 400ml whipping cream
- Ground cinnamon or pumpkin spice, for dusting.
Equipment
- Deep 22cm loose-bottomed cake tin
- Large roasting tin
- Baking parchment, cling film and foil
- Food processor
- Wooden spoon
- Pastry brush
- Mixing bowl
- Electric whisk
- Cake stand or serving plate.
Technique
- Heat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7.
- Butter the cake tin and line with baking parchment. Wrap the base and side of the tin with layers of cling film and foil. Fold a clean tea towel and put it in the base of the roasting tin.
- Use a food processor to blitz the biscuits to crumbs. Add the melted butter and coat the crumbs. Tip the mixture into the prepared cake tin, spreading up to the side and pressing down with the back of a spoon.
- Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven, brush with the egg white and bake for another 3 minutes – helping avoid any soggy bottoms!
- For the filling, put the soft cheese in a bowl, and beat with an electric whisk until loosened. Add the pumpkin purée, sugar and flour and beat again until combined. Gradually add the eggs and egg yolk until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
- Pour the filling over the baked biscuit base, then sit the cake tin on the tea towel in the roasting tin. Pour a kettleful of just-boiled water into the roasting tin so the water comes halfway up the side of the cake tin.
- Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 110C/90C fan/gas ¼. Bake for a further 1 hour 30 minutes until the cheesecake is set, with just a slight wobble in the middle when you gently shake the tin. Turn off the oven, then open the oven door slightly and leave the cheesecake to cool inside for 2 hours until completely cool. Remove from the oven and chill overnight.
- The next day, carefully remove the cold cheesecake from the tin and transfer to a cake stand or serving plate. Whip the cream to soft peaks using an electric whisk, and spoon in big dollops over the cheesecake.
- Dust with a little cinnamon or pumpkin spice to serve – and enjoy!
If you try these recipes for yourself, don’t forget to send us a photo on social media!