Secrets of cooking pumpkin puree

Such a useful vegetable as a pumpkin has always been popular. With it you can cook a variety of dishes, including mashed potatoes for the little ones. All the secrets of its preparation - in our material.

In order to prepare a healthy mashed potatoes, you can choose any sort of pumpkin. In that case, if you want the dish to turn out to be sweeter and you don’t have to add sugar or spices, it is best to give preference to nutmeg. Their flesh is very juicy, sweet and has a bright orange color. It is easy to distinguish such a variety: its fruits are oblong in shape, resemble a light bulb familiar to everyone and have a thin and delicate skin.

Hard and large varieties can no longer boast such sweetness. Their rind is thicker and their advantage is that they can be stored for a long time. As a rule, vegetables of these varieties are round or oval.

When choosing a vegetable for cooking, be sure to pay attention to its ripeness. If the fruit is unripe, its seeds will be thin, empty. In the ripe fruit the seeds are thick and easy to open. The pulp of a ripe and healthy fruit must be saturated in color. In the event that it is pale, this suggests that it does not have enough beneficial vitamins. The flesh should be uniform in color. In the case of unripe or improperly grown fruits, the middle of a vegetable is different in color - it is more pale.

Also pay attention to the "tail" of the vegetable. It should be dry. If it is not on the selected copy, then such a fruit is not worth taking. Pumpkin peel should be whole, uniform color, without spots, cracks and dents.

Next, pay attention to the size of the vegetable. Do not choose too large and small copies. The best option is an average pumpkin. Remember that the larger ones have a more fibrous texture of the pulp and are not suitable for delicate mashed potatoes.

In addition, pumpkins are summer or winter varieties. The first are great for making desserts or mashed potatoes. But such fruits can not be stored for a long time. You can freeze the pulp of fruit for the future or make mashed potatoes with a reserve.

Pumpkin puree made from ripe and tasty fruit, of course, has a lot of useful properties. The calorie content of this fruit is very low, only 19-25 calories per 100 grams of product. Calorie vegetable depends on its grade. As for BZHU, namely nutritional value, the proteins in the pumpkin are slightly more than a gram, in any variety. Almost no fat, but carbohydrates from 4 to 7 grams.

This juicy and healthy fruit is almost 90% water. Each piece of this bright vegetable contains a lot of vitamins and minerals that are extremely beneficial to human health at any age. Pumpkin contains magnesium, zinc, fluorine, potassium, copper, silicon, iron and other minerals. We should also mention the high content of carotene, which is extremely positive effect on the health of the eyes and eyesight in general.

Also, the fruit contains a large amount of vitamin C and E, vitamins of group B, fiber, vitamin K, nicotinic acid, carnitine, etc.

This bright vegetable is often chosen for baby food of infants and older children because it is healthy and tasty. Pumpkin puree is great for the first meal, but it should be introduced into the menu gradually. Puree from this vegetable is usually weak, does not fasten at all and is perfect if your baby suffers from colic and constipation. The same effect has a pumpkin on the body of an adult.

It is necessary to give such puree to children with care, observing the norms and proportions. Remember that they should never eat raw vegetables in any way.

Due to the high content of beta-carotene, the pumpkin has a positive effect on the work of the immune system, strengthening it. Also, this vitamin has a beneficial effect on vision, improves skin condition and slows the aging process.

Other vitamins that are found in large quantities in this vegetable have a positive effect on protein-fat metabolism, prevent the appearance of blood clots, have a positive effect on the work of the circulatory system, help relieve pain in diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, have a positive effect on the kidneys, heart and prevent the development of osteoporosis.

Also, vitamins, in particular, group B, have a positive effect on the work of the nervous system, help relieve tension, prevent depression and do not allow the body to experience stress. In addition, this group of vitamins has a beneficial effect on the brain, helping to improve memory and attention.

This fruit strengthens the immune system, not allowing viruses and bacteria to strike the body in the period of colds. A vitamin-rich vegetable normalizes many processes in the body, positively affecting the formation of muscle mass.

Useful properties of this vegetable can be listed for a very long time. Pumpkin is an excellent preventive measure against many ailments and diseases. The use of such a product will certainly have a positive effect on the body, but only if you follow the measure and take into account contraindications.

In the case of a disease such as gastritis with low acidity, it is necessary to abandon the use of this vegetable. Also, pumpkin is contraindicated in those who suffer from diabetes, gastric ulcer or duodenal ulcer. You can not eat a vegetable in case of individual intolerance or in case of allergies.

In case of excessive consumption of such a vegetable in food, an allergic reaction may develop, problems with the liver may begin and the skin will become yellowish. Especially when it comes to young children. Babies should not be given this puree more often than twice a week.

At home, it is easy to make healthy pumpkin puree, there are several proven ways to prepare such a dish. Optional vegetable boil. It is possible to cook it in a slow cooker or oven.

Before you start cooking, the vegetable must be thoroughly rinsed with running water, cleaning the peel from dust and dirt. After you need to wipe the fruit with a dry cloth and cut it into two halves. Summer varieties are easily cut, but for the winter with a thick skinned will need a rough male power. Next, remove the seeds. Do not rush to send them to the trash. They can be washed, dried and used in salads or for decorating soups.

If the vegetable is baked in the oven, you can put it on a baking sheet in two halves (if the pumpkin variety is small). If the fruit is large, then you can cut it into large slices and in this form send baked. By the way, this method of cooking vegetables is considered not only the most useful, but also tasty.

Baked vegetable for an hour at a temperature of 180 degrees. You can check the readiness of the vegetable with a fork. And one more small piece of advice: for the pumpkin to clot faster, it can be completely wrapped in foil. Once the vegetable is ready, the pulp can be easily separated from the rind, mash it and cook mashed potatoes.

Another method of making mashed potatoes is its simplicity and speed. Thoroughly washed vegetables should be peeled and cut into small cubes, about 1 to 1 cm.Put the vegetable cubes in a saucepan, pour some water so that it covers the vegetables and simmer on low heat for twenty minutes. Once the pumpkin is fully prepared, you can knead it in mashed potatoes.

You can turn boiled or baked pumpkin pieces into mashed potatoes with the help of tolkushki, but if you want to get a more homogeneous and tender mass, it is best to use a blender. Children are given mashed potatoes without adding spices, salt or sugar. If desired, you can slightly dilute it with a vegetable broth or milk.

In the event that you want to prepare a healthy mash of juicy summer pumpkin for the winter, then we offer the following recipe. For its preparation, you need a medium-sized vegetable weighing 2-2.5 kg, 800 g of regular sugar and 100 ml of pomegranate juice. Juice can be used and cooked at home, and purchase. Vegetable should be cleaned and chopped, then put in a saucepan and add all remaining ingredients. Boil the vegetable in this syrup for about 30 minutes, then chop the blender to a puree state and boil over a slow fire for another 10 minutes. Next, lay the mashed potatoes in prepared sterilized jars and close. This recipe can be repeated with a frozen pumpkin, it turns out also very tasty and cooked quickly.

Another option for winter harvesting. To do this, you need 2 kg of purified pumpkin, 0.5 kg of sugar and one teaspoon of citric acid. In this embodiment, the vegetable must first be baked in the oven. We described this process in more detail above. Once the pumpkin is ready, it should be chopped in a blender, put into the pan, add all the ingredients to simmer on low heat for 10 minutes. Mashed potatoes can be consumed immediately or rolled up in jars.

To prepare a healthy dish for the baby, you need to take 100 grams of peeled pumpkin. Try to choose nutmeg varieties, as mashed potatoes turn out to be very tender, without hard fibers. Vegetable cut into thin plates and fill with water (half a glass). Pumpkin should be stewed for 20 minutes on a very slow fire under a closed lid. As soon as the vegetable is ready, the remaining liquid should be drained, and the pumpkin should be ground to a state of mashed potatoes. Add a few drops of vegetable oil. For infants in the mashed potatoes add breast milk. For older children add milk or cream.

If it seems to you that pumpkin puree is very sweet, and you want to slightly dilute its taste and serve as a side dish, we recommend you to refer to the following recipe. Take a kilogram of peeled pumpkin fruit, 100 grams of fresh cranberries (you can use frozen), 0.5 liters of purified water, 100 grams of sugar. If desired, you can add a little ground cloves or cinnamon, it all depends on personal taste preferences. Vegetable should be cut into cubes. Prepare syrup from water and sugar and send pumpkin to it. Cook until done. While the vegetable is boiled in syrup, prepare the juice from the berries and add it to the vegetable after it is ready. Using a blender, make a smooth mash and boil everything for fifteen minutes. Mashed potatoes turn out rather original sweet-sour taste.

If there is such a miracle device in the house as a slow cooker, then it will be easy to cook delicious mashed potatoes. Peeled fruit should be divided into small pieces and boil for a couple using a special cooking mode. It will take about fifteen minutes. Once the vegetable is ready, it should be chopped in any convenient way. Already in this form, you can use mashed potatoes, for example, you can give it to children as complementary foods. And if you want to serve it as a side dish, you can add a little grated cheese. Try to choose solid varieties so that the cheese simply melts and does not stretch in the finished dish.You can also add spices to your taste, for example, black pepper.

Extraordinarily tasty and healthy mashed potatoes can be made from pumpkin and apples. The taste of the finished product will turn out to be unusual, slightly sourish. Such mashed potatoes will be an excellent source of vitamins, if you prepare it for the winter. For cooking you will need the following ingredients: a kilogram of peeled vegetable, 0.5 kg of peeled apples (it is better to take solid and sour varieties), 80 grams of sugar and a teaspoon of citric acid. Apples and pumpkin need to be cut into small pieces, and then mince or chop in a combine. The resulting mass should be filled with sugar on top and let stand for five minutes. After cooking over low heat for two hours.

Once everything is ready, add citric acid and cook for another five minutes. Then you can roll up in banks or use. It is not recommended to keep such mashed potatoes in the refrigerator for a long time.

If as a side dish you often use a vegetable such as pumpkin, then the following recipe, described step by step, will appeal to you. Such mashed potatoes may well become an independent dish. We take 5 medium potatoes, 500 grams of peeled pumpkin, two slices of fresh garlic and some favorite greens. Peeled vegetables are cut into cubes and filled with a small amount of water. Cook everything for half an hour, salt to your taste.

Once the vegetables are ready, drain the liquid, add garlic and 3-4 tablespoons of vegetable oil, you can olive. If you want, you can add butter to taste or heavy cream instead of olive or sunflower. Grind everything to a state of mashed potatoes, sprinkle with herbs and serve to the table.

See how to make pumpkin puree for your baby in the next video.