How to Eat the Whole Damn Pumpkin: Flesh, Skin & Seeds

At Misfit Garden, we’re all about giving love to the unloved and making sure nothing good goes to waste especially when it comes to pumpkins. If you’ve only been scooping out the insides and binning the rest, it’s time for a pumpkin glow-up. Flesh, skin, seeds, they're all good, they're all edible, and we’re here to show you how to use the whole thing.

Step 1: Don't Fear the Skin

Most people think pumpkin skin is tough and useless not true. Especially with smaller varieties like honeynut pumpkins, the skin cooks down beautifully when roasted, sautéed, grilled, or baked. It’s tender, full of nutrients, and honestly, it saves you a load of time. No peeling = more eating = happy humans.

How to Use It:

• Roast it: Cut your pumpkin into slices or wedges, toss with oil and spices, and roast until caramelized. The skin crisps up at the edges and stays tender underneath.

• Grill it: Chuck thick slices straight onto the barbecue for a smoky flavor bomb.

• Soup it: Roast the pumpkin (skin on) then blend it into soups - the skin disappears right into the mix, adding depth and extra fiber.

Tip: Smaller pumpkins and winter squash like honeynut, kabocha, and red kuri have softer skins perfect for eating. If you're using a huge carving pumpkin, the skin can be tougher, but if you roast it long and slow, it’ll still soften up.

Step 2: Honour the Flesh

This is the part you probably know and love already, sweet, rich, hearty pumpkin flesh. Roasting brings out the best in it, but don’t stop there.

Other Ideas:

• Puree it for pies, muffins, or pancake batter.

• Toss cubes into salads or grain bowls.

• Stuff it: Roast halves and fill them with whatever you fancy - grains, veggies, cheese, you name it.

Quick hack: If you roast pumpkin skin-on, you can scoop the flesh out after if you really want to, but trust us, eating the whole thing is the way forward.

Step 3: Save (and Snack on) the Seeds

Pumpkin seeds are little green nuggets of magic. Roasted right, they’re crunchy, nutty, and ridiculously good for you.

How to Use Them:

• Roast them: Scoop out the seeds, rinse off the gunk, pat them dry, toss with oil, salt, and spices, and bake at 170°C (340°F) for 10–15 minutes.

• Spice them up: Go sweet with cinnamon sugar or smoky with paprika and cumin.

• Sprinkle them: Over salads, soups, oatmeal, or just eat them by the handful.

Pro tip: You can even roast them with a bit of the stringy bits still attached, it crisps up and adds extra flavor!