Whole Stuffed Pumpkin
This is the dish that makes a pumpkin worth buying for dinner instead of a lantern: cut off the lid, pack the inside with stale bread, cheese and bacon, pour in cream, and the oven does the rest for an hour and a half. It goes to the table whole, and the spoon brings up something between fondue and a bread pudding. The quantities are deliberately loose — this is a recipe to play with.
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 1 h 30 min
- Total
- 1 h 55 min
- Servings
- 4
- Level
- Medium
- Per serving
- 440 kcal
Ingredients
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What to use instead
Any good melting cheese replaces the Gruyère: mozzarella makes it stringy, aged Gouda makes it nutty.
Makes: 1 pumpkin, 4 servings
Shopping list
The ingredients for the servings you chose — copy them or send them to a messenger. Tick what you already have at home: only the rest goes on the list.
Method
Oven
175 °C · top and bottom heat, no fan
With a fan: 155 °C
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Step 1: Heat the oven
Set the oven to 175°C and line a snug, high-sided dish with parchment. The pumpkin softens and may lean as it cooks; the dish holds it up.
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Step 2: Cut the lid
With a sharp knife, cut a lid around the stalk at an angle, as you would for a lantern, so it cannot drop inside. Scoop out the seeds and strings, then season the cavity with salt and pepper.
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Step 3: Mix the filling
In a bowl toss the bread, cheese, bacon, garlic, chives and thyme and season with pepper. Go easy on salt: the bacon and cheese bring their own.
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Step 4: Fill the pumpkin
Pack the filling in firmly, almost to the rim. Leftovers are no problem; if it falls short, add more bread and cheese.
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Step 5: Pour in the cream
Season the cream with nutmeg and a pinch of salt and pour it in slowly. The filling should be moistened, not swimming; a larger pumpkin needs more cream.
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Step 6: Bake with the lid on
Put the lid back on and bake for about an hour, until the flesh starts to give to a knife.
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Step 7: Uncover
Take the lid off and bake another 30 minutes or more, until the pumpkin is completely soft and slightly slumped and the filling is golden on top.
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Step 8: Serve
Bring it to the table whole. Cut it into wedges, or simply spoon out the flesh together with the filling.
Tips & variations
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Tip
Choose a small, thick-skinned squash such as butternut or Hokkaido. A big field pumpkin takes longer than the filling can stand and gives off a lot of water.
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Variation
Swap the bacon for 150 g of fried mushrooms to make it vegetarian; a spoonful of cream cheese on top brings back the richness.
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Swap
Any good melting cheese replaces the Gruyère: mozzarella makes it stringy, aged Gouda makes it nutty.
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Storage
Leftovers keep 2 days in the fridge. Reheat in pieces at 180°C for 15 minutes.
Nutrition
| 1 serving | Whole dish 4 servings | |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 440 kcal | 1,760 kcal |
| Protein | 16 g | 64 g |
| Fat | 27 g | 108 g |
| Carbohydrates | 33 g | 132 g |
Approximate values calculated from standard ingredient data.
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