pumpkin inside pumpkin

As the weather is dropping it is time for a hearty meal. This pumpkin chili provides just that! A twist on a classic this version gives you a taste of pumpkin. Perfect this treat by serving it in a pumpkin bowl.

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds of ground turkey (veggie friends: try tofu crumbles)
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 2 (15 ounce) cans kidney beans, drained
• 1 (46 fluid ounce) can tomato juice
• 1 (28 ounce) can peeled and diced tomatoes with juice
• 1/2 cup of canned pumpkin puree
• 1 tablespoon of pumpkin pie spice (this is a seasonal spice that will take some searching)
• 1 tablespoon of chili powder
• 1/4 cup of white sugar

Directions:

Chili:

1. In a large pot over medium heat, cook turkey (or tofu); then drain.
2. Stir onion and bell pepper and cook for 5 minutes.
3. Stir in beans, tomato juice, diced tomatoes, and pumpkin puree.
4. Season with pumpkin pie spice, chili powder, and sugar.
5. Simmer 1 hour.

Pumpkin bowl:

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
2. Clean and dry small pumpkin.
3. Cut off top to create a bowl.
4. Dig out insides, use a spoon to scrape sides clean. Clean pumpkin seeds and dry.
5. On a cookie sheet place cleaned out pumpkin bowl upside down on the pan. Also place dried pumpkin seeds on the pan at the same time.
6. Bake for 45 minutes. When removing from the oven, the pumpkin bowls will be soft but still in tact. The inside walls of the bowl are eatible!
   
   

ps. turns out that cats love pumpkin seeds too!