How to Start Preserving Pumpkin

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Preserving Pumpkin is easy to do safetly when you know how. Learn how to puree and freeze pumpkin for use in your favorite pumpkin recipes all year long.

Preserving Pumpkin is easy to do safetly when you know how. Learn how to puree and freeze pumpkin for use in your favorite pumpkin recipes all year long. #presservingpumpkin #pumpkinpuree #freezingpumpkin #pumpkin #pumpkinrecipes

How to Preserve Pumpkin

This time of year you are probably starting to see pumpkins everywhere. Lining the streets at the produce stand, filling the front aisles of the grocery stores, and scattered around porches and storefronts as decorations. Their beautiful orange color signals the start of the fall harvest season. With that season comes delicious baked goodies and the smell of pumpkin spice. You may even have grown pumpkins yourself, they’re very easy to grow. Like summer squash, they’re also very prolific. So what do you do with it all and how do you store pumpkin to use it throughout the season?

Pumpkin is something that really shouldn’t be canned. The thickness of the puree makes it hard for it to be pressurized correctly. Even though it can’t be safely canned doesn’t mean you can’t preserve it! Pumpkin puree can easily be frozen to safely store it for use in and out of season! Freezing pumpkin puree is pretty easy to do, there are only a few steps.

Freezing Pumpkin

What you need:

What to do:

preserving pumpkin

I love to use sugar baby pumpkins. They’re smaller, slightly sweeter and much less fibrous so they’re easier to work with than larger, carving pumpkins. They have also always grown very easily for me. If you can’t grow them, you should be able to find them at your local grocery store or Farmer’s Market.

preserving pumpkin

 First, wash off the pumpkins. You don’t need to do a heavy scrubbing, just get the dirt off the outsides.

preserving pumpkin

Next, cut the pumpkins in half.

preserving pumpkin

 Then, scoop out the “guts” of each pumpkin. Make sure you don’t scoop out any of the meat, just clean out the stringy stuff and the seeds. Don’t throw this away, surprisingly, the seeds are full of nutrients! I’ll share below how to make these into a yummy snack.

–Check out these 11 Ways to Use Pumpkin Seeds.

preserving pumpkin

Put the cleaned-out pumpkin halves in the oven, cut side up at about 375F.

preserving pumpkin

Cook them until they pass the “potato doneness test”. Poke the meat with a fork, when it’s done, it should be fork-tender, like a cooked potato.

preserving pumpkin

 Allow the pumpkin to cool and use a spoon to scrape the cooked meat out. A fully cooked pumpkin should clean out really easily. You can almost peel the skin right off. Put all the meat into a bowl.

preserving pumpkin

Stick the meat in a food processor and add a little water. Puree until the consistency is like baby food.
Processing it in small batches and using the water will help the pumpkin puree easier and better.

preserving pumpkin
Put about 2 cups of pumpkin puree in each freezer bag and label. By putting 2 cups in each bag it should be close to one can of store-bought pumpkin so you can easily use each bag in exchange for a can in a recipe.

Flatten out each bag of pumpkin as you lay it in the freezer so it freezes flat.

Want to print this process for Preserving Pumpkin for your Recipe Binder? Grab it below:

Freezing Pumpkin

Ingredients

  • Pumpkins I prefer to use Sugar Baby Pumpkins

Instructions

  1. Wash off the pumpkins. You don't need to do a heavy scrubbing, just get the dirt off the outsides.
  2. Cut the pumpkins in half.
  3. Scoop out the "guts" of each pumpkin. Make sure you don't scoop out any of the meat, just clean out the stringy stuff and the seeds.
  4. Put the cleaned-out pumpkin halves in the oven, cut side up at about 375Cook them until they pass the "potato doneness test". Poke the meat with a fork, when it's done, it should be fork tender, like a cooked potato.
  5. Allow the pumpkin to cool and use a spoon scrape the cooked meat out. Put all the meat into a bowl.
  6. Stick the meat in a food processor and add a little water. Puree until the consistency is like baby food.
  7. Processing it in small batches and using the water will help the pumpkin puree easier and better.
  8. Put about 2 cups of pumpkin puree in each freezer bag and label. 2 cups should be close to one can of store boughten pumpkin so you can easily use each bag in exchange for a can in a recipe.
  9. Flatten out each bag of pumpkin as you lay it in the freezer so it freezes flat.

Making Pumpkin Seeds

I love Pumpkin seeds. They are so good and are so good for you, plus they are like a free bonus when you are preserving pumpkin! Here is how to make some super yummy seeds for your next snack.

What you need:

  • Pumpkin Seeds
  • Cookie Sheet
  • Garlic Salt

Clean all the seeds out of the pumpkin. You can use the seeds from Sugar Baby pumpkins or the big ones like the ones you carve, it doesn’t matter.
Wash the seeds and clean out the chunks of pumpkin. Don’t worry about it being completely perfect.
Spread out on a cookie sheet. It does not have to be greased since you will be moving the seeds around. bake on 250F for about an hour or more. Scoop around the seeds with a spatula about every 10 minutes. Sprinkle garlic salt on to your desired saltiness. Keep moving the seeds around and baking until the seeds start to turn brown and they snap in half when you try and break them
Yum. These smell so good while they are cooking!

–Find the full tutorial for Roasted Pumpkin Seeds here along with other flavor ideas that you can try.

Looking for recipes to use your frozen pumpkin puree? Check these out:

Pumpkin Turtle Cheesecake
Pumpkin Whoopie Pies
Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
Fruit Filled Pumpkin Bites Recipe
Pumpkin Zucchini Bread Recipe
Eggless Pumpkin Pie Recipe
Easy Pumpkin Cookies
Pumpkin Cake, Bread, or Muffins
Crustless Simple Pumpkin Pie Recipe

Have you ever tried preserving pumpkin? How much do you generally try and put away each year?

merissabio

This post on Preserving Pumpkin was originally published in September 2012. It was updated as of September 2021.

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29 Comments

  1. Okay I will say it again you are so smartttttttttt !!!!!

    You also must have time to do these things without being interupted by others, My hat is off to you, you teach me so much.

    Thanks Bonnie

  2. I do this every year and using this to make pumpkin pies is soooo much tastier than the store-bought stuff. I use the same freezer bag method for pie sized servings but I also make a few quart sized bags with 1/2 cup each in them so I can use it for things like making a batch of pumpkin whoopie cookies, pumpkin pancakes, or my favorite is to mix it with some cool whip and some spices for a yummy and healthy dip!

  3. What a wonderful post and idea. I just love it. Would have come in handy a few years ago as well when there was that awful pumpkin shortage. My kids just love it when I bake pumpkin bread for school lunches! I would love for you to link this up to our blog hop today. I think it is so informative and your photos are simply lovely.~Melissa

  4. I can pumpkin every year for my family of 14 and we’ve never gotten sick. I will say that if you find a can that the lid has popped on, you won’t find a worse smell! But we can quarts and quarts of pumpkin every year (a local farmer lets me glean in his field after Halloween), use it to make pies, muffins, cookies, etc, and never had any problem.
    I have frozen it in the past, but my goal is to can as much as I can to save freezer space. Also, if we lose power for several days, I won’t lose my canned food.
    Love your blog!!

  5. I would like to respectively disagree with you on your canning pumpkin comment. Canning it doesnt produce bacteria and you can search the internet over & you will not find that comment in any professional forum or statement.

    I do agree with you that it is advised by the USDA to NOT can pumpkin puree but that is because that is because there is no way to regulate the thickness and viscosity of the puree of the product being canned and no way to actually test it (USDA or anyone else) to determine whether or not the center of the jar gets hot enough, long enough to kill any botulism spores should there be any in the pumpkin.
    The USDA does give guidelines for canning chunk winter squash & pumpkin, just not purees.

    Saying that.. I make pumpkin butter & its not recommended to be canned either.. but I do and we’ve never gotten sick nor has any ever been bad. I pressure can mine (half pints & pints) for 90 minutes just to be on the safer side. I would do the same thing with plain pumpkin if I were going to can it.

    The Amish water bath it.. Its enough for me to raise an eyebrow but they’ve been making it that way long before pressure canners were invented so who am I say nay… 😉

    1. I agree with you but legally I can’t tell ya’ll it’s safe to can pumpkin puree. It may work for some of you but I can’t recommend it in case one of you tries it and gets sick and decides it’s my fault:( The decision is up to each individual on what you believe is safe to do for you and your family. 🙂

      1. I have frozen pumpkin puree lots of times, but several years ago I had an abundance of pumpkins and I wanted to can some I only did it in pints and I did it for 90 minutes at 10 lbs pressure. It turned out great I didn’t fill the jars to the top, I left plenty of head space for the heat to penetrate through and through. It was very easy, tasty, and fast when I wanted to do a bit of baking. I’m a true country gal and I have been canning everything I can for years now. I LOVE your blog thanks again.

  6. I freeze pumpkin puree in ice cube trays. This way I can grab a couple of cubes to thaw whenever I need to, without having to thaw a large bag. I like to sneak pumpkin puree into muffins, pancakes, brownies, spaghetti sauce, and more. Having it frozen in cubes makes it so easy to do – just don’t tell my kids!

  7. In addition to freezing pumpkin, I freeze my persimmon puree. I measure out the amount that I use in my persimmon pudding and put it in freezor bags, squeeze out the air and lay flat to freeze. Wonderful winter treat.

  8. I find that it helps to drain the pumpkin through a fine strainer or cheesecloth before freezing. It comes out less runny when thawed and takers up less room in the freezer.

  9. My fresh veggie market had their pie pumpkins 3 or 4 for a dollar in early October. They have been decorating my porch table since then. This week I’m baking them all to be used for pies, muffins, bars, and cakes–all incredibly tasty and totally vegan. I should have enough pumpkin to last thru the holidays for our large family. What a thrifty deal!

    I freeze my pumpkin by two cups in small zip bags. Then to thaw it, I cut a hole in one corner and drape over a cup to drain out the excess water. We don’t use commercially canned foods, so this is a great alternative.

  10. Very good information to know this time of year:) thanks for sharing ! I would love for you to share this post at my Create & Share Link Party tonight (7:00 PM MST)! Hope to see you there 🙂

  11. G’day! I always enjoy learning something new! Thanks for sharing your pumpkin recipe at our #SayGdayParty! Please stop back if you haven’t already done so, to visit some other people’s submissions at the party! Cheers! Joanne What’s On The List? Perhaps you’ll answer one of my questions too! 🙂

  12. Yes for preserving your own food! I tried preserving pumpkin before but didn’t puree it in a food processor. I’ll have to remember to put it in the food processor next time. Thanks for linking up to Gingerly Made!

  13. Just wondering if you have tried this with butternut squash, this year I seem to be having all the luck with this growing. I have never tasted one before but I read they are similar to pumpkin.

    1. I think I would cube butternut squash instead of puree it. Unless of course, you use it pureed 🙂 I haven’t frozen butternut squash because I like to keep it in cold storage but I’m sure it would work just like pumpkin.

  14. This was great. A friend gave me a pumpkin last week and I was determined to cook it. I followed your instructions and couldn’t be happier. I froze 2 cup bags for pies and I cup bags for my husbands
    favorite pumpkin bread. My husbands birthday is Halloween and I’ll be making him a pie. Now I have to find a good recipe for the pie. Oh and
    the seeds are cooking in the oven as I write this. Thanks a Bunch !

  15. Question, how long will my sweet potato pie filling keep in the freezer? Today is the 15th and I’m baking on the 24th.

  16. I actually use a fork first when cleaning the inside. It allows me to “comb” out the seeds without all the stringy pulp. Then I scoop out the pulp from there separately. Works great and less hassle.

  17. Libby’s canned pumpkin is from Dickinson pumpkins, which are more similar to a butternut squash than what we think of as pumpkins. Because of that I use butternut squash in pumpkin recipes for its richness, though I like pie pumpkins. For freezing, I halve and bake then scoop out into a colander for awhile to drain off excess fluid. From there I measure out into different proportions for common recipes I use then put in bags. When I take out and thaw, I then combine the squash with the liquid ingredients in the recipe in the blender to puree. Saves the time in doing all that work first rather than later. Thank you for your info!

  18. Good Morning, I’m trying to find a reputable source for celtic salt, cayenne pepper and a few other items? Can you recommend a source? I love your blogs and recipes and am so glad I found you. Thank you so much. Dixie Brady