Today, Julia went out and gathered a bunch of leaves to put around it.
Just as we were getting ready to sit down and eat, we hear a knocking at the door. Argh--who could it be visiting at dinner time, for goodness sake? "Hello--we're missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints." Us: "Have you eaten yet?" "No, we're just out tracting." "Well come on in!" So they did. And just as Elder #1 was dishing up, he says, "Are there tomatoes in this?" "Yes." "Elder #2 is allergic to tomatoes." Awkward. "Hang on!" So downstairs I go, grab some sausage, potatoes, vegies. To the microwave and the stove and whew. I can feed the guy. Meanwhile, though, A is getting crazy (time change=grumpy earlier), so I head upstairs with him, leaving dinner on the table.
Finally, after everyone was in bed, I came downstairs, dished up, and reheated it. And it was the perfct ending to the day. I wouldn't say it's fancy food. It's pretty basic and comfy comfy.
And easy to make. Here's how:
Give a lobotomy to a medium sized pumpkin and scoop out the innerds.
Salt the inside.
Place upside down in a good sized pan with about an inch of water in the bottom. Lid, too.
Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes.
In the meatime, cook 1-1/2 cups of rice the usual way (I used beef broth, though). While that's doing it's thing, brown a pound of hamburger or sausage with an onion. Add a can of diced tomotoes. Season to taste. Throw in some vegetables. Mix the cooked rice with the meat mixture.
Take out the pumpkin, dump out the water, and turn the pumpkin right side up. Stuff the rice in the pumpkin. Stick it back in the oven and bake for another half hour until the pumpkin is tender. When you serve it, be sure and scoop out the cooked pumpkin, too. Butter and salt and yum!
Last year I think I did something different, but I can't remember anything really except there was some curry in it, I think. Really, you can make whatever slumgullion deal you want for the inside.
Enjoy!
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