Pumpkins everywhere! Here are some Maltese dishes you can make with your jack o'lantern leftovers
With pumpkin in season at the farmer’s market and filling shops everywhere for the Halloween season, you might be finding yourself with some extra pumpkin flesh and seeds in the next few days. If so, here are some typical Maltese dishes that use pumpkin as one of the main ingredients – enjoy!
Maltese Pumpkin Pie
Pumpkin pie might sound like something coming from the US, but the Maltese version of this pie is very particular, and includes a couple of unexpected ingredients – like rice and occasionally even raisins! The pumpkin flesh is seasoned with herbs such as mint, parsley and oregano and mixed with the rice and other flavourful ingredients such as canned tuna, anchovies, olives and capers, to amp up the taste like only Mediterranean cuisine can do!
Pumpkin Soup
The Australian Maltese home cook based in London, @amaltesemouthful, has found a way to make pumpkin soup ten times more tasty and essentially Maltese! The inspirational food blogger Marlene Zammit garnishes the typical soup with coriander seeds, semolina and the divine Maltese sausage – suddenly looking forward to your next soup day?
Pumpkin Fritters
Once again inspired by Marlene Zammit's culinary creations, your pumpkin flesh could be used to make these delicious autumn fritters. Combining the pumpkin with egg, flour, oil and your herb or spice of choice and throwing the mix in the frying pan, these fritters could be the perfect savoury or sweet addition to your meal. Why not try add some cinnamon for some real autumn taste? Check her blog for the full recipe.
Bonus: Get creative!
Pumpkin is a very versatile vegetable that can add delicious taste and vitamins to any meal - maybe a meat stew or risotto. Using pumpkin as a binder is another option - it's a great way to reduce eggs and flour in your cooking, as the starchy components of the autumn vegetable give your food a velvety texture and luscious feel.
Which of these will you be making tonight?