Well, with Halloween coming, this is one of my favorites when carving pumpkins with my grandchildren!!!
Meal in a Pumpkin
Medium sized pumpkin (4 pounds)
1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef
1/3 cup chopped green pepper
3/4 cup chopped celery
3/4 cup chopped onion
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 (4-ounce) can mushrooms
1 (10.5-ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
2 cups cooked rice
Black olives
Steamed carrot
Whole cloves
Fresh parsley
- Using a sharp knife, cut lid from pumpkin and scoop out pumpkin seeds and excess membrane.
- In a large skillet, combine ground beef, green pepper, celery and onion; cook over medium heat until ground beef is browned. Add next seven ingredients to skillet. Mix well and place mixture into pumpkin cavity.
- Place lid on pumpkin. Place pumpkin on a foil-lined cookie sheet and bake at 350°F (175°C) for 1/2 hour.
- Just before serving, embellish pumpkin by placing (with toothpicks) black olives to make eyes, a steamed carrot to make a nose and whole cloves to make a mouth. Use fresh parsley leaves to make hair around the opening.
- To serve, scoop out part of the baked pumpkin, along with the meat mixture, onto each plate.
Enjoy,
John Melnyk
