I am officially dippy – I would like to believe that dips are a food group, I know that they are not, but I can dream. But this dip, served with some crudites and pitta bread possibly does count as a reasonably balanced meal. It is a pretty pale orange and perfect for Halloween, watched over by my Alien I carved earlier in the week.
Pumpkins are everywhere at this time of year, they are wonderful for carving but unless handled carefully they can be rather bland and boring to eat. My usual solution to boring non leafy vegetables is to roast them; roasting concentrates the flavours and caramelizes some of the starch making dull and watery transform into something altogether more interesting. For this dip I peeled and roasted a whole pumpkin (about 12″ / 30cm) and used about 1/6 of the flesh in my dip. The rest was turned into soup.
Favourwise there is a mix of East and West – tamari and toasted sesame oil give an oriental influence, bought West to North America; the home of Halloween celebrations, with the addition of liquid smoke and maple syrup. A world of flavours in a bowl for my watchful Alien. Liquid smoke is an American invention, widely available in the USA and becoming increasingly easy to find in the UK, and has become a store cupboard staple for me. It does what is says on the bottle, adding an authentic smoky taste to anything you add it to; it is made by passing smoke through water. You can make up your own mind on its safety. The EFSA is investigating one of the ingredients, but bizarrely is not comparing it with traditionally smoked goods. I have used less than a small bottle in over 2 years and am not going to worry considering the amount of smoked fish and meats that I like to eat.
Roasted Pumpkin Hummus
1/6 of a medium pumpkin
1 tsp paprika
glug olive oil
1 tin chickpeas – drained and rinsed
juice half a lemon
1 clove garlic – peeled
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 tbs tamari (I use Clearspring which is double strength) or use soy sauce
1 tbs maple syrup
dash liquid smoke
salt & pepper to taste
Cut your pumpkin in half and scoop out the fibres and seeds. Cut into 1″ wide wedges and peel. Place on a baking tray, sprinkle with olive oil, paprika and salt & pepper. Roast at 190C / 375F / GM4 for about 45 minutes, turning every 10 minutes or so. Allow to cool. Place all the ingredients in the food processor and blitz until smooth. Thin with a little water if needed. Season to taste.
Serve in a pretty bowl with a sprinkle of chilli flake and sesame seeds with vegetables and strips of pitta bread.
Sounds delicious and love the photo, with alien head in background!
Sounds lovely. I may have to try this with one of the pumpkins from my veg box. (As an aside, I can never understand why people find pumpkin bland. Kabocha is my favourite vegetable!)
Oh, I do like liquid smoke – I brought a few bottles back from the US when I was over there. Recipe sounds lovely. Your alien terrifies me though.
@bellish – I love kabocha too!
Wowee what a clever idea for pumpkin. I usually eat pumpkin in a soup or in over fry form, but how clever. Thanks for the idea!
@Kavey – thanks. I start my photography course next week so am starting to try and think about styling. A bowl of orange gloop does not look great by itself.
@bellish – I think that the large carveing pumpkins are overwatered to make them swell? the pulp from mine was really not much use for anything. Agree on the Kabocha. I like to open, scoop, roast and serve filled with a creamy mushroom filling
@Meemalee – After you bought half the smokery stock I just knew you would be a fan of liquid smoke.
@Girlonraw – Hello – thanks for stopping by. I saw your blog via Amber’s. I am wondering if I could use sprouted chickpeas for a half raw dip?
Mmm I like the sound of this! I did a sweet potato hummus last Christmas but I think pumpkin would be even better.