Stuffed Pumpkin with Rice and Vegetables

These stuffed pumpkins are small cooking pumpkins roasted until tender, then filled with brown rice, mushrooms, red pepper, spinach, garlic and thyme, topped with Parmesan and toasted pumpkin seeds. The pumpkin flesh turns sweet and soft, so you scoop it up with each spoonful of the savory filling. It’s a vegetarian main course for autumn and winter that serves 4 and takes about 1 hour 20 minutes, much of it oven time.

• Serves: 4 (one small pumpkin each)
• Prep time: 25 minutes
• Cook time: about 55 minutes
• Total time: about 1 hour 20 minutes

Ingredients

Pumpkins

• 4 small cooking pumpkins or round squash, about 600 to 800 g (1¼ to 1¾ lb) each
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• A pinch of salt and black pepper

Filling

• 150 g (¾ cup) brown rice, rinsed
• 400 ml (1⅔ cups) low-salt vegetable stock or water
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 medium onion (about 150 g), finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 200 g (7 oz) mushrooms, sliced
• 1 red bell pepper (about 150 g), diced
• 100 g (3½ cups) baby spinach
• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves, or ½ teaspoon dried
• ¼ teaspoon salt and black pepper
• 40 g (½ cup) grated Parmesan or a vegetarian hard cheese
• 30 g (¼ cup) pumpkin seeds

Method

1. Heat the oven to 200°C (400°F), or 180°C (350°F) for a fan oven.
2. Cut a lid off the top of each pumpkin, about 2 cm (¾ inch) below the stem, and scoop out the seeds and stringy fibers with a spoon. If a pumpkin won’t sit flat, trim a thin slice off its base.
3. Brush the insides with olive oil, season lightly, and put the pumpkins and their lids on a baking tray. Roast for 25 to 30 minutes, until the flesh is just tender when pierced with a knife.
4. Meanwhile, put the rice and stock in a pan, bring to a boil, then cover and simmer for 25 to 30 minutes, until the rice is tender and the liquid is absorbed.
5. Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Cook the onion for 5 minutes until soft, then add the garlic, mushrooms and pepper and cook for 6 to 8 minutes, until the mushrooms are golden and their liquid has cooked off.
6. Stir in the spinach and thyme until the spinach wilts, then mix in the cooked rice. Season with salt and pepper and stir in half the Parmesan.
7. Pack the filling into the roasted pumpkins, piling it up a little. Top with the rest of the Parmesan and the pumpkin seeds.
8. Return to the oven, with the lids alongside, for 20 to 25 minutes, until the filling is hot all the way through and the pumpkin flesh is very soft.
9. Put the lids back on to serve. Eat the filling and scoop the soft pumpkin from the skin as you go.

Choosing your pumpkins

Use small pumpkins grown for eating, such as sugar pumpkins, or small round squash like acorn, kabocha or small butternut. Large carving pumpkins are watery and stringy, with little flavor. Each pumpkin should be about the size of a large grapefruit. If you can only find bigger ones, use 2 pumpkins, add 15 to 20 minutes to the first roasting time, and serve half a pumpkin each.

Cutting a hard pumpkin needs care. Use a large, sharp knife on a damp cloth so the board doesn’t slip, and keep your fingers away from the blade.

Tips

• Cook the rice ahead to save time. Leftover rice works if it was cooled quickly and kept in the fridge. Food Standards Scotland advises cooling cooked rice within 1 hour, eating it within 24 hours, and reheating it only once.
• Cook the mushrooms until golden. Wet mushrooms make the filling soggy.
• Don’t overfill. The filling should sit just above the rim so it browns.
• Roast the scooped seeds from the pumpkins with a little oil and salt for a crunchy snack.

Swaps and variations

• Grains: use quinoa, wild rice or pearl barley instead of brown rice.
• Protein: stir in a can of drained chickpeas or lentils, or 200 g of cooked crumbled sausage if you’re not cooking for vegetarians.
• Cheese: use feta or goat cheese instead of Parmesan.
• Vegan: skip the cheese and add toasted walnuts and a squeeze of lemon.
• Festive: add a handful of dried cranberries and chopped toasted pecans.

Nutrition per serving (estimate)

One serving is one stuffed pumpkin, including about 300 g (10½ oz) of pumpkin flesh. These figures were calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for raw pumpkin, brown rice, onion, garlic, mushrooms, red pepper, spinach, olive oil, Parmesan, pumpkin seeds and salt. Stock isn’t included, so the sodium will be higher if you use a regular stock.

The sugars come naturally from the pumpkin, onion and pepper, with no added sugar. Pumpkin is also rich in beta carotene, which the body turns into vitamin A: USDA data lists about 3,100 mcg of beta carotene per 100 g of raw pumpkin. Using brown rice and plenty of vegetables keeps the fiber up. Our guide to green foods covers more ways to add vegetables to meals.

Contains: milk (Parmesan). Check the stock label for celery, which is a common allergen in stock cubes.

Leftovers

Cool leftovers quickly, cover them, and keep them in the fridge. Because the filling contains rice, eat it within 24 hours and reheat it only once, until steaming hot all the way through. Reheat in the oven at 180°C (350°F) for 20 to 25 minutes, covered with foil.

What to serve with it

• A green salad with a sharp vinaigrette.
• Our green beans with toasted almonds.
• Crusty whole grain bread.
• For a lighter starter, a bowl of our tomato basil soup.

Common questions

Can I eat the pumpkin skin?

The skin of thin-skinned squash such as acorn or delicata softens enough to eat. The skin of most pumpkins stays tough, so scoop the flesh out instead.

Can I make it ahead?

Yes. Roast the pumpkins and make the filling up to a day ahead, keeping them separately in the fridge. Fill and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until hot all the way through.

This article is general information, not medical advice. Nutrition figures are estimates from USDA FoodData Central and will change with the brands and amounts you use. If you follow a diet for a medical reason, check the recipe with your doctor or dietitian.