The long culinary history of pumpkins – from ancient Mexican soups to modern spiced lattes
This article was originally published on The Conversation. October heralds the beginning of pumpkin season. Over the course of the month, they will be used for a variety of non-culinary purposes. In Belgium, they are hollowed out for boat races, and in Ludwigsburg, Germany, thousands of multi-coloured pumpkins are used to make seasonal sculpture parks. At the end of the month, they will be carved up with a ghoulish grin to celebrate Halloween, a tradition that is becoming increasingly popular across the globe.
Why pumpkins aren’t just for Halloween – a guide to the unsung hero of autumn’s kitchen
There’s a sad little post-Halloween ritual in Britain that’s enough to make a chef weep.Once the jack-o’-lanterns have served their ghoulish purpose, we toss thousands of tonnes of perfectly edible pumpkins out with yesterday’s cobwebs and plastic spiders.According to the environmental charity Hubbub, around 18,000 tonnes of pumpkins head for landfill annually – in real terms, that’s more than 15 million pumpkins. That’s also good food rotting away – food that could be spiced, roasted, mashed and spooned onto plates all winter long.Mike Davies, chef-owner of The Camberwell Arms and author of new cookbook Cooking for People, has a...