How to process and eat your incredible edible pumpkin

Are you trying to figure out how to process and eat a pumpkin? Want to know which parts of a pumpkin plant are edible? You’re in the right place!

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This is Part 2 in our pumpkin series. Make sure you didn’t miss the first article all about pumpkin history, folklore, and interesting pumpkin facts.

Grow your own pumpkins to enjoy all their edible parts!

One of the many benefits of growing your own pumpkins instead of buying canned pumpkin from the grocery store is that you can eat every part of the plant.

Yes, pumpkin flowers, leaves, stems, seeds, and flesh (including pumpkin skin) are all edible!

Why else would you grow your own pumpkins? You might enjoy growing unusual heirloom varieties of pumpkins for their unique characteristics…

Just as with tomatoes, different varieties of pumpkins offer different flavors. In fact, we grow some pumpkin varieties that are so sweet and nutty on their own, that no additional sugar is needed to turn them into pies!

We also grow varieties of pumpkins that are bred to have especially delicious seeds, such as ‘Pipian from Tuxpan’ and ‘Styrian’ pumpkins.

You might also want to grow your own pumpkins to ensure that they don’t contain any synthetic pesticides, and that they were grown in ways that nurtured the soil, rather than degraded the soil.

If you grow your own pumpkins, we’ll show you how to use all the edible parts your pumpkin plants have to offer. We’ll also show you how to process those beautiful pumpkin fruits into recipe-ready pumpkin puree. 

Or if you’re simply trying to figure out how to turn your Halloween pumpkins and jack-o-lanterns into food rather than food waste, we’ve got you covered! 

Part I. How to eat pumpkin flowers

We love eating various types of edible flowers, many of which are amazing superfoods packed full of nutrition. Some of the largest and tastiest flowers we grow in our gardens are edible pumpkin and squash flowers.

What do pumpkin flowers taste like?

Pumpkin flowers have a sweet yet slightly earthy flavor with a hint of raw pumpkin flavor.

Since pumpkins, winter squash, and summer squash are all closely related cucurbits that we grow in abundance in our garden, we eat lots of their flowers throughout the summer.

How do you eat pumpkin flowers? 

You can munch pumpkin flowers straight off of the plant when you’re in the garden. Pumpkin flowers can also be added to salads, dipped in pancake batter and fried, or chopped and used as a garnish.

Pumpkin flower nutritional information:

No matter how you eat them, you’ll enjoy knowing that a single cup of pumpkin flowers offers the following nutrients:

• 643 IU vitamin A
• 9 mg vitamin C
• 57 mg Potassium
• a host of other essential micronutrients 

Male vs female pumpkin flowers – only eat the males!

Important tip: If you want to eat pumpkin flowers and still get actual pumpkins, only eat the male pumpkin flowers!

How to harvest pumpkin flowers without affecting fruit set

Pumpkins are “monoecious,” meaning a single plant will produce both male and female flowers. Usually the first ~8 or so flowers on a pumpkin plant are male (to start attracting pollinators), then the plant begins developing female flowers. 

Bees and other pollinators use the pollen from the male flowers to pollinate the female flowers, which contain only nectar (no pollen). How can you harvest male pumpkin flowers and still get actual pumpkins?

Either:

1. Leave some male flowers on the plant for your pollinators, or
2. Become a “pollinator” yourself by taking the harvested male flowers and rubbing their stamens against the female flower’s pistils once you’ve harvested the flowers. (If that sounds a bit too X-rated for your tastes, just use a q-tip or small paint brush to carry pollen from male to female flowers.)

4 simple ways to eat your pumpkin flowers:

1. Eat them raw in the garden.

2. Add them for visual interest to a mixed green salad (the soft yellow petals have the same texture as lettuce).

3. Roll them in pancake batter and cook them in a skillet like a pancake (finished with maple syrup or berries).

4. Stuff them with sweet or savory goodies and fry them (here’s a good recipe).

Part 2. How to eat pumpkin leaves

Yes, pumpkin leaves are edible too! In fact, they’re even considered a delicacy in parts of Asia.

(Pumpkin greens are included in our article 14 garden greens you can grow in the summer in hot climates.)

Pick the younger aged pumpkin leaves for eating, not the older tougher ones. Then use them in cooked recipes like you would spinach. You can also use your pumpkin leaves to make cooked wraps, similar to the way grape leaves are used in Mediterranean cuisines.

If your raw pumpkin leaves feel a bit spiny to the touch, not to worry. Once cooked or fermented, the tiny spines will soften beyond noticeability. 

Part III. How to prepare & eat pumpkin seeds

There are pumpkin varieties bred to produce hulless seeds (without tough fibrous seed coating). These are the varieties that produce the “pepita” pumpkin seeds you find in a grocery store. 

Popular hulless pumpkin varieties for edible seed production include: 

• Styrian, aka Austrian oil seed (our personal favorite)
• Gleisdorfer 
• Kakai Hulless
• Lady Godiva
• Naked Bear

Can you eat hulled pumpkin seeds or seeds from jack-o-lanterns? 

Yes, you can eat any type of pumpkin seed, whether hulled or hulless — including seeds from your jack-o-lantern (which typically contained seeds with hulls).

• Hulless pumpkin seeds can be eaten raw or cooked. 
• Hulled pumpkin seeds are better cooked prior to eating. 

Recipe: How to make oven roasted pumpkin seeds 

Here’s how to make your own oven-roasted pumpkin seeds: 

1. Slice open your pumpkin, then scoop out the seeds with your hands or a large, sturdy spoon. Do your best to separate the seeds from the pulpy strands inside, before placing the seeds in a bowl.
2. You can dry your pumpkin seeds prior to baking for a faster cooking time and lower risk of exploding/popping seeds, but it’s not necessary. We usually just use fresh, undried pumpkin seeds. 
3. Pre-heat your oven to 400°F (204°C). Cover a baking/cookie sheet with foil (it works better than parchment for this recipe). 
4. While oven is preheating, put pumpkin seeds in a bowl. Add extra virgin olive oil (about 1/2 tbsp per 1 cup seeds) and quality salt to taste. (You can always add more salt at the end if needed.) Stir ingredients, then spread seeds into a single layer on your cookie sheet.
5. Place in oven on middle oven rack and set timer for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, remove and stir/flip seeds with spatula before returning to oven. Total cook time will vary depending on seed size and moisture content. For larger, fresh/wet seeds, expect about 25 minutes total cook time. Smaller, dry seeds: you can be done in about 10 minutes. To get your pumpkin seeds evenly roasted, be sure to remove them from oven and stir/flip seeds every 5 minutes with a spatula until done.
6. Remove pumpkin seeds from oven once golden brown and serve warm! 

Your oven-roasted cooked pumpkin seeds will store for about 5-7 days at room temperature.

Pumpkin seed nutrition

Pumpkin seeds are a great source of protein, magnesium, copper, and zinc. Hulled pumpkin seeds are also very high in fiber.

The oils in pumpkin seeds are incredibly healthy for you, containing good fatty acids such as oleic acid and alpha-linolenic acid.

IV. How to process and eat pumpkin flesh (the “meat” of the pumpkin)

Pumpkin flesh is healthy, delicious, and versatile. It can be used in a seemingly infinite variety of dishes and drinks. It’s also very easy to turn a large pumpkin into usable pumpkin puree, freezing enough to last until the next year.

Step-by-step: Here’s how to process and eat your incredible edible pumpkin:

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F (176°C).

2. Cut your pumpkin into chunks small enough to fit on a baking sheet. Cover the baking sheet with foil or parchment paper first so the pumpkin doesn’t stick when you bake it.

3. Put the pumpkin chunks onto the baking sheet skin side up/flesh side down, so that the pumpkin meat doesn’t get charred.

4. Bake until the pumpkin flesh is soft (the amount of time it takes will vary depending on the size of your chunks and the type of pumpkin you’re using). A simple test to know when your pumpkin is done: you should be able to stick a fork through the biggest chunks of pumpkin without much effort.

5. Remove pumpkin chunks from oven, let cool, then scoop out the meat and put the skin in compost. (*We often puree our skin too since it’s loaded with nutrition, so try both ways to see what you like best, which may depend on the variety of pumpkin used and the thickness/texture of the skin.)

6. Put the pumpkin meat in a food processor and blend it until it’s smooth and chunk-free.

You now have fresh pumpkin puree that you can use immediately or freeze for later use in pies, puddings, coffee cake, chili, pumpkin spice pancakes, and many other dishes.

We hope you enjoy all parts of your incredible, edible pumpkin! Remember, if you grow your own pumpkins, you can select unusual varieties for their unique culinary qualities AND eat the flowers and leaves as they grow.

Read part 1 of this pumpkin series: A quick look inside the history and folklore of your Halloween pumpkin. Also, check out the Google Web Story video of this how to eat your pumpkin article!

More pumpkin articles you’ll love:

• Recipe: How to make Tony and Andrea’s pumpkin champagne 
• The history, origins, and folklore of pumpkins
• Disappearing whole wheat spiced pumpkin pancakes 
• Mom’s pumpkin chili with turkey and black beans
• Fall harvest coffee cake with pumpkins and apples