I’m not sure what I’m doing to celebrate Samhain from a spiritual perspective this year. It marks the one year anniversary of my uncle’s death so I’m all over the place about it. I know I’ll be seeing The
Rocky Horror Show (which is the full live musical production vs the audience participation movie) on Halloween proper but . . .after that, I don’t know.
Since I don’t know what I’m doing, I’ve already made a stuffed pumpkin for me and Jow to mark the season. I tweaked my recipe a little since I originally posted it and I will tweak it here as well but I will post the original entry in its entirety:
I find that Samhain really kicks off the start of holidays with a bunch of people jammed into a house that you wish you could escape. Sadly, I am far too masochistic to take the far more reasonable misanthropic solitary approach to the holidays, so to my grove I go, pumpkin in hand! I find food helps make up for personal social akwardness, it acts as a pre-emptive apology. “Sorry I can’t feign interest in the boring topic you have trapped me into conversation about. I made you a pumpkin!” At the very least, I can always be grateful that Samhain is hosted at our Señora Druid’s house, enabling me to leave before I turn into a pumpkin and/or say or do something that brings dishonor to my family. Oh and I don’t cook like this for every Sabbat because that leads to heavier drinking and high covenmate expectations which should both be avoided. This is my big “ta-da” for the year.
Stuffed Pumpkin Recipe
1 large cheese pumpkin
2 boxes cornbread mix
3 stalks celery, diced
2 shallots, diced
1 pack pork sausage (if you can get local grassed, it does make a difference. In for a penny, in for a pound)
1 cup chicken stock
1 cup dry white wine
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons fresh sage, chopped
3 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
1 large aluminum roasting pan
Olive oil
Make the cornbread according to the directions on the box the night before. Cut cooled corn bread into small cubes. Leave out overnight.
Preheat your oven to 450 degrees.
Delegate. Carving open the top of the pumpkin is a huge pain the butt. Find another sucker who doesn’t mind potentially losing fingers to the surly pumpkin. Make sure the diameter of the opening is almost as large as the top of the pumpkin. A cheese pumpkin puts up a bigger fuss than a regular pumpkin on being carved so make sure your special helper uses a very sharp implement.
Scoop out pumpkin guts. Cheese pumpkins have less seeds and less guts. Have your special helper pick out the seeds. Roast them if you want.
Gently score the inside of the pumpkin with a knife. Brush olive oil on the inside and outside of the pumpkin. Salt and pepper the inside.
Put the pumpkin in its pan and roast for a half hour. Run a fork through the inside to get at the pumpkin flesh.
While the pumpkin is roasting, warm up 2 capfuls of olive oil in a frying pan. Decase the sausage by squishing it out of its casing like a tube of toothpaste. Crumble it into the frying pan with the celery and shallots. Cook until vegetables are softened and the sausage is browned.
In a large pot, mix sage, parsley, white wine, butter, chicken stock, vegetables, corn bread and sausage together. Salt and pepper. Cook on medium heat for ten minutes, stirring.
Put stuffing into pumpkin. Try to mix the pumpkin flesh into the mixture as much as you can. Roast for another 30 minutes.
Ta-da!
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Her frequently updated catalogue of published work is available on Author Central.
She writes about Glamour Magic here at Charmed, I'm Sure. Her podcast appearances are available here.
Her craft shop, The Mermaid & The Crow specializes in old-world style workshop from 100% local, sustainable sources featuring tempting small batch ritual oils and hand-spun hand-dyed yarn in luxe fibers and more!
In a previous life, Deborah founded the first Neo-Victorian/Steampunk convention, SalonCon which received rave reviews from con-goers and interviews from the New York Times and MTV.
She resides in New Jersey with her husband, Jow and their cat, Max II. She has a terrible reality television habit she can't shake and likes St. Germain liquor, record players and typewriters.
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One Response
Meliad
Om Nom Nom!
Could you do this with a pie-pumpkin? (Smaller pumpkin, would work for feeding 4-6 people, I think).
Given that you’re taking the sausages out of the casing, could you use grass-fed ground pork + seasonings of your own devising, possibly to great effect? (Clearly, I’m all: I totally think you could!)
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