Try These Perfect Pumpkin Recipes This Halloween

Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas 4.

Place the pumpkin or squash in a roasting pan and sprinkle over the orange zest and juice, ginger, and olive oil. Roast in the preheated oven for 20–30 minutes until the squash is soft when you cut it with a knife.

Meanwhile, prepare the toasted truffle seed mix. Place all of the seeds in a dry frying pan together with the truffle salt and pepper. Stir with a spatula for a few minutes over the heat until the sunflower seeds turn a light golden brown. Take care that they do not burn, and tip out from the pan as soon as you’ve finished cooking.

Remove the roasted pumpkin or squash from the oven and place in a saucepan with the stock over a medium heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for about 15 minutes. Blitz in a food processor or blender until the soup is smooth (or use a stick blender).

Pour the soup into four bowls and add a swirl of cream to each. Serve topped with toasted seeds.

Preheat the oven to 220C/Gas 7. Roast the pumpkin or squash until tender and lightly caramelised.

Melt the butter in a saucepan set over a medium heat and once sizzling, add the flour. Mix very well and cook for a couple minutes. Add a splash of milk and allow the milk to be absorbed before you add another splash. Continue this process until all the milk is used. Let the sauce cook and thicken for about five minutes, stirring constantly—it should end up with a custard-like thickness. Remove from the heat, add the Parmesan, stir to combine, then season well (make sure you taste it).

Scatter a layer of pumpkin on the base of a baking dish, followed by chicory, some dollops of ricotta, then a layer of lasagne sheets. Top with the white sauce and a scattering of basil. Repeat the layers, continuing until you’ve used up all the ingredients. Finish with a scattering of basil and a sprinkle of Parmesan. Bake for 40 minutes until tender, golden brown on top, and bubbling.

Preheat the oven to 200C/Gas 6. Cut off a ‘lid’ from the pumpkins and reserve. Scoop out the flesh with an ice-cream scoop to make a smooth container.

Put the onions in a sieve set over a bowl and cover with boiling water. Leave for two minutes, then drain, pat dry with paper towels, and distribute among the pumpkins. Add the tomato halves, the basil leaves, a generous tablespoon or two of pesto, then the goat cheeses or mozzarella. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Each of the hollows should be nicely filled with the ingredients.

Brush the pumpkins all over with olive oil, brushing the top of the cheese. Set the ‘lids’ slightly askew. Arrange in an oiled roasting pan or dish and bake until tender. Test with a metal skewer after about 20 minutes, then every five to 10 minutes until done (the time will depend on the size of your pumpkins).

Note: if using small butternuts, halve lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. If large, cut them off just as they start to narrow into a waist—you’re aiming for a hollow receptacle.

Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas 4 and place a baking sheet on the middle shelf to preheat.

Sprinkle a little flour on a clean work surface. Roll out the dough to a thickness of about two to three millimetres. Carefully lift up the pastry (it may help to lift it while on the rolling pin) and lay it in the pie dish. Trim any excess pastry from around the edge with a small knife.

Gather up any scraps of dough, knead very lightly to bring together into a ball, and roll out again. Use the star-shaped cutter to stamp out lots of stars. Brush the edges of the pie with a little milk and stick the pastry stars, slightly overlapping, all around the edge. Chill the pastry case in the refrigerator while you prepare the filling.

Put the puréed pumpkin, whole eggs and yolk, brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, salt, and cream in a large bowl and whisk until well mixed and smooth. Carefully pour the mixture into the pie dish, brush the stars with a little more milk and scatter the granulated sugar over them. Put the pie on the hot baking sheet in the preheated oven and bake for about 35 minutes, or until the filling has set and the pastry is golden brown around the edges.

Remove the pie from the oven and let cool to room temperature before dusting with the icing sugar.