To save Tom the Turkey from the chopping block, here are two recipes for my favorite Thanksgiving dinner dish ever: Stuff Pumpkins! You can serve them as your main course or as a side to your turkey.

Image: Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

Thanksgiving Stuffed Roast Pumpkins

These vegetarian-friendly stuffed roast pumpkins give people who prefer a plant-based diet a main course worthy of a Thanksgiving centerpiece.

Sasha is a senior culinary editor at Serious Eats. He has over a decade of professional cooking experience, having worked his way up through a number of highly regarded and award-winning restaurant kitchens, followed by years spent in test kitchens for food publications.

WHY IT WORKS

• Par-roasting the pumpkins ensures that all components of the dish are perfectly cooked.
• Adding layers of kabocha squash purée intensifies the deep pumpkin flavor.
• This recipe can easily be adapted to use ingredients that you already have on hand for Thanksgiving dinner.

Click here for fabulous step by step directions.

Ingredients

For the Roasted Pumpkins and Squash:

• 4 small sugar pumpkins (1 1/2 to 2 pounds each; 675 to 900g)
• 1 large skin-on kabocha squash (about 2 pounds; 900g), halved and seeded
• Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the Mushroom and Kale Filling:

• 2 tablespoons (30ml) extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 pound (450g) shiitake mushrooms (or a mix of mushrooms, such as oyster, chanterelles, and beech), stemmed, cleaned, and thinly sliced (see note)
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 8 ounces (225g) lacinato kale (a.k.a. dinosaur, Tuscan, or black kale), tough stems removed, leaves cut into 1-inch pieces
• 4 tablespoons (60g) unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
• 2 medium shallots, finely minced (about 1/2 cup; 80g)
• 1 medium garlic clove, minced
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
• 1/4 cup (60ml) sherry
• 1 tablespoon (15ml) sherry vinegar

For the Spiced Cream:

• 2 cups (475ml) heavy cream
• 1 cup (240ml) whole milk
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• Pinch ground cloves
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the Glaze (optional):

• 2 tablespoons (40g) red miso paste
• 2 tablespoons (30ml) honey
• 1 tablespoon (15ml) water

To Finish:

• 10 ounces (285g) high-quality rustic bread, cut into 3/4-inch dice and toasted until dry
• 3/4 cup (120g) pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds), toasted
• 3/4 cup (90g) pecans, toasted and roughly chopped
• 8 ounces (225g) shredded Gruyère cheese

Learn about Serious Eats’ Editorial Process

The Best Stuffed Pumpkin Recipe

By Taylor Stinson | The Girl on Bloor

Click here for fabulous step by step directions.

Ingredients 1x2x3x

• 4 mini pumpkins you may want to double this number if they’re really small. Mine were 3 inches tall.
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 yellow onion sliced
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 1 cup kale finely chopped
• 2 tbsp dry white wine optional
• Salt & pepper to taste
• 1 cup gruyere cheese grated

Turkey sausage

• 1 lb ground turkey
• 1 tbsp fennel seeds
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp each salt & pepper

And Pie!!

Also, I happen to discover this very great way to help people who need extra care and support, especially around the holidays through the work that Food & Friends does, as well as local business Whisked! And get two very awesome pies for Thanksgiving Day!!!

Food and Friends is the only community-based organization in the DC region providing home-delivered medically tailored meals and nutrition therapy to our neighbors living with cancer, HIV/AIDS, and other serious illnesses.

Whisked is A Women Owned Business in the DC Area. Jenna Huntsberger started Whisked by Jenna as a single farmers market stall back in 2011. These our desserts can be found in the aisle of retail giants like Whole Foods. Staying true to our roots, we’ve also collaborated on unique flavor combos with a variety of DC local eateries, like CAVA and PLNT Burger.

Happy Thanksgiving!