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Robin Ward

Delicious Stuffed Pumpkin with Bacon & Gruyere

Tender pie pumpkin filled with creamy Gruyère, crispy bacon, garlic, thyme, and toasted bread. Savory, rich, and irresistibly gooey. Only 15 minutes of prep before it bakes into everything amazing you want—creamy, cheesy, and totally delicious!
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Servings: 4
Course: #sidedish
Cuisine: American
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 3 stale bread slices, cut into 1″ pieces (about ¼ lb.)
  • 1 sugar/pie pumpkin, about 3-3.5 pounds (or more) scraped of seeds and pulp (For more than four servings, simply double the recipe and opt for either a larger pumpkin or two pie pumpkins to accommodate your needs.)
  • 4 slices bacon, cooked until crisp, drained, and chopped
  • about ⅓ cup heavy cream (You may wish to increase the cream to ½ cup for a looser stuffing consistency.)
  • ¼ heaping cup Gruyere cheese, shredded cheese (about ¼ lb.) (Emmenthal, cheddar, or a combination of these cheeses will work also.)
  • 2-4 cloves garlic cloves (to taste), split, germ removed, and coarsely chopped
  • ¼ cup snipped fresh chives or sliced scallions
  • 1 Tbsp thyme, minced fresh thyme
  • 1 pinch freshly grated nutmeg
  • 1 Tbsp butter for lining the pumpkin
  • salt and pepper for sprinkling inside the pumpkin

Equipment

  • pumpkin scraper (or a scoop with a sharp edge)

Method
 

  1. Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350. Line a baking pan with parchment. You can also use a casserole dish to bake the pumpkin in but might stick to the casserole, so you'll have to serve it from the dish which is a homey way to serve it.
  2. Crisp the bacon in a skillet. Remove once done. Drain most of the oil, leaving about 2 Tablespoons.
  3. Toast stale breadcrumbs and minced garlic in the same skillet for 3-5 minutes.
  4. Meanwhile, cup a hole in the top of the pumpkin like you would do on Halloween, cutting in at a 45-degree angle so the lid doesn’t fall in. You want to cut off enough of the top to make it easy for you to work inside the pumpkin. Remove the seeds and pulp inside the pumpkin and discard. Rub the inside walls and underside of the lid with butter. Salt and pepper to taste.
  5. You can either combine the ingredients in a bowl or start by filling the pumpkin with stale breadcrumbs and garlic. Next, add the Gruyère, pour in the heavy cream, and mix in the remaining spices. Ensure the pumpkin is filled without excess cream. Replace the lid, place it on a baking rack, and carefully transfer it to the oven. (*See Note.)
  6. Cook the filled pumpkin for 75 minutes. Check on it and remove the cap. Then bake an additional 15 to 20 minutes so the filling can brown a little. (Increase baking time to 2 hours if using a larger pumpkin.)
  7. Handle the baked pumpkin with care, as it will be both heavy and delicate. Transfer it to a serving platter for presentation, then slice or scoop out the filling to serve.

Notes

A pumpkin scraper makes cleaning out pumpkins quick and easy, unlike a regular spoon which can be frustrating and ineffective.
 
*I baked the pumpkin directly on the oven rack with a parchment-lined sheet pan on the rack beneath to prevent sticking. Alternatively, follow Dorie Greenspan's instructions to bake the pumpkin on the sheet pan with parchment, especially if using a very large pumpkin or two pie pumpkins.
 
Omit the bacon and you've got a great vegetarian main course!
 
For last minute homemade applesauce to serve alongside the pumpkin:
You can use almost any type of apples to make sauce. I generally don’t use fancy varieties because I think the delicacy of flavor can get lost in the sauce. So I generally use ones for baking (Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, your neighbor’s random tree), and leave the fancy varieties for eating fresh. Here is what I used to yield about 1.5 - 2 cups.
  • 2-3  large apples, cored and roughly chopped
  • 1 tsp to 1 Tbs. (to taste) brown sugar
  • a pinch of cinnamon 
  The process is really straight-forward. Throw the apples in a small saucepan with a little water – just enough to prevent the bottom from burning. Simmer everything down until the apples lose their shape. The trick toward the end is to stir often, since the thicker it becomes the more likely it will burn on the bottom.
  Use a masher to help the apples fall apart and reach a good chunky consistency. 
  When it’s reached a good consistency (anywhere from lump to smooth depending on your preference), stir in the brown sugar and cinnamon. You might add the brown sugar in increments, tasting until you get the sweetness you like. If you like nutmeg, add a bit. If you want to use honey instead of sugar, go for it.
  The apples do not need to be skinned beforehand. If you are okay with strips of skin in the applesauce, you should be just fine. If that clash of textures weirds you out, just use an immersion blender when the sauce is finished to really make it fine.