Almost-perfect pumpkins
It's been probably about 10 years since I've carved a pumpkin. Scratch that. It's been probably about 15 years. So you can imagine my apprehension (and excitement) when I decided that this year, my boyfriend and I were going to carve pumpkins.
The process took a few hours -- from cutting a hole in the top to scooping out the guts to carving a design in the pumpkin -- and by the time we were done, our arms and necks were sore from contorting our bodies to get the best angle on the pumpkins.
I chose to carve a scary cat with a moon. My boyfriend chose to carve Jack Skellington from "The Nightmare Before Christmas."
My boyfriend's design seemed pretty simple -- with the exception of the mouth. My design also seemed easy -- but I was wrong. (Perhaps I was a little ambitious. After all, I had just interviewed and written a story about a Genoa City woman who is a master pumpkin carver.)
My boyfriend quietly carved on the floor of the living room while I perched on the edge of the couch, balancing my pumpkin on the coffee table. My boyfriend never seemed to utter a word of frustration. I, on the other hand, made a precarious cut -- between the body and tail of the cat -- and my design fell apart. I was able to save my work with the help of a few toothpicks.
All in all, we were quite pleased with our carving. And now the two pumpkins occupy a prominent spot on our living room floor.
I think we'll take a stab (pun intended) at it again next fall.
Have you carved pumpkins this year? How creative or ambitious have you gotten with your carving?
Oct 29, 2009 at 4:27 p.m.
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Fly, if you are talking about my reference to another website, excuse the heck out of me. I was just sharing a unique recipe and wasnt about to type out the whole thing.
sheesh.
Oct 29, 2009 at 6:30 a.m.
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Now that's the first time I'v seen this. Spam on a news blog? How tiresome, I guess we just can't escape it.
Good job with the Pumpkins Kayla, they look great!
Oct 28, 2009 at 12:47 p.m.
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I found an interesting recipe for Pumkin Seed Brittle on paula deen's website. Sounds yummy and fun to make!
Oct 28, 2009 at 12:34 p.m.
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I did roast the seeds. I rinsed and dried them, then tossed them in a mixture of butter and olive oil and garlic salt. I put them in the oven on 350 until they were brown. Yum!
Oct 28, 2009 at 12:15 p.m.
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Dillion- Excellent suggestion!! We are going to do pumpkins Friday night. The ones from my garden are shrimpy, so we're going to paint them. I got two big ones from the store for carving.
Ann Marie Ames
Oct 28, 2009 at 11:52 a.m.
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Instead of cutting the hole in the top of the pumpkin...cut a hole out of the bottom...then you just have to set them over the candle/light instead of having to deal with reaching down inside with a lit candle...or worrying about the lid shriveling up and falling inside.
Oct 28, 2009 at 10:57 a.m.
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There's a nifty way of shaving instead of cutting the pumpkin that I've always admired but have never been able to master.
Oct 28, 2009 at 10:39 a.m.
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Very nice. Did you roast the pumpkin seeds? That's the best!
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