Stuffed Mini Pumpkins

I love cooking in the fall! This pumpkin recipe is ideal for dinner parties, and you can make this with your kids too:) it's stuffed mini pumpkins--one savory recipe, and one sweet:) Here's what you'll need:

mini pumpkins (I prefer the organic variety)
ground turkey, beef, or TVP (textured vegetable protein)
pureed squash
shallots
butter (or vegan margarine)
allspice
turmeric
white pepper
fresh herbs (thyme, rosemary, oregano)
brown rice
sea salt
half an apple (Granny Smith, as red as you can find:))

Start by cutting off the top of the pumpkin and getting all the seeds and meat out. Save the parts of the meat you want to use for the filling:) Rinse the pumpkin thoroughly, and make sure it's hollow enough for all the good stuff to fit inside.

Melt some butter in a large saucepan and throw in some chopped shallots, along with the chopped Granny Smith apple. Add a few sprigs of fresh herbs, sea salt, turmeric, and white pepper to taste. Add the ground meat of your choice, along with a few shakes of allspice. Mix in the pureed squash (if you want, you can mix in some heavy cream or vegan cream cheese into the squash before adding it to the meat mixture). Stir in the chunks of pumpkin and cover the mixture so that it will cook thoroughly--about 15 minutes should do it:)
Boil about a cup of instant brown rice in a separate pot, and flavor with sea salt and white pepper.

After the 'stuffing' and the rice have cooked thoroughly, pour a few heaping spoonfuls into each pumpkin 'bowl', and garnish with fresh herbs. You can serve the meal with your choice of a creamy or warm fall beverage--stay tuned for upcoming blogs to get recipe ideas! Enjoy:)