Halloween Experts

As Halloween draws closer, it’s time to start planning your pumpkin carving for this year. In the next few weeks, I will post one article per week dedicated to designing and sculpting the best Jack O’Lantern that has ever graced your porch. The first step in this process is knowing your pumpkin!

The pumpkin is a squash, a fruit, of the same family as cucumbers. They probably originated in Central America. Seeds from pumpkin like plants have been found in Mexico dating back to 5500 B.C. They were a staple of the Native American diet. When European explorers and settlers learned of the plant, they sent seeds back home. Today, pumpkins are cultivated all over the world.

Pumpkin is a rich source of Vitamin A and potassium. It has a high fiber content. Depending on how it is prepared, pumpkin can be a very healthy food source. Historically, pumpkin has been used medicinally as a cure for freckles and a treatment for snakebite. Today, the consumption of pumpkin seeds is known to promote prostate health for men.

Pumpkins come in all shapes and sizes, from “Baby Boo” miniature pumpkins that fit in the palm of your hand, to the giant, prize-winning varieties that can weigh upwards of 1500 lbs. They come in a rainbow of colors, from the common orange, to green, white and blue varieties. They can be smooth skinned, or extremely rough. Each variety suggests new and unique designs!

The basic components of a pumpkin are as follows:

The Stem: Located on top of the pumpkin, the stem is usually brownish green. It was the umbilical cord that connected the fruit to the vine, and brought in nutrients from the main body of the plant. When choosing a pumpkin, it is best to find one with the stem still firmly attached. Never lift your pumpkin by the stem, or it will break off. This will become the handle for the “lid” of your Jack O’Lantern.

The Shell: This includes both the skin, also called the rind, the shiny orange outer covering, and the pulp, also called the meat or the flesh, the part that is cooked and used in many wonderful recipes.

The Blossom End: When the pumpkin vine produces blossoms, each is a potential pumpkin. the scar where the blossom used to be attached is what we consider the bottom of he pumpkin.

The Guts, Brains, Goop: Actually, they are called the fibrous strands that fill the cavity in the middle of the pumpkin. These gooey strands contain the pumpkin seeds.

The Seeds: Pumpkin seeds can be planted to produce the next season’s crop of pumpkins. They are made up of the seed shell and the nut inside. There are many excellent recipes for snacks and foods made from pumpkin seeds. (See our recipe section!)

Watch for upcoming posts for choosing the design for your Jack O’Lantern and the proper pumpkin and tools to use for it.