Easy Roasted Pumpkin (crisp edges, creamy pulp)
Thick wedges of seasonal pumpkin are baked in the oven with herbs and spices. A great seasonal recipe that lets the vegetable shine! Easy and delicious side dish for the holiday season. You can easily double this recipe to roast a whole pumpkin.
Servings 4 servings
Ingredients
- ½ whole English or sugar pumpkin
- 4 tablespoons olive oil see Notes below for alternatives
- ½ teaspoon salt or to taste
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
- dash of cayenne pepper or hot/smoked paprika
- 2 tablespoons fresh herbs or 2 teaspoons dried I like thyme and oregano or sage
- pinch of ground cinnamon optional, for warmth
- crumbled goat cheese or feta cheese optional, to serve
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC).
- Cut ½ whole English or sugar pumpkin into thick wedges using a sharp kitchen knife. Be careful, as it can be slippery. You might need to make partial cuts depending on the size of the pumpkin. If the pumpkin slices don't fit in your tray at once, you might need to bake them in two batches.
- Arrange the pumpkin wedges, cut side up, in a single layer on a baking tray.
- Drizzle with 4 tablespoons olive oil and sprinkle with ½ teaspoon salt, freshly ground black pepper, a dash of cayenne pepper, 2 tablespoons fresh herbs or 2 teaspoons dried and a pinch of ground cinnamon, if using.
- Bake for 15 minutes, and lay them on their sides. Continue baking for 15 more minutes, turn them on the other side and bake for 15 more minutes, or until golden and fork-tender. The baking time can vary (sometimes significantly) depending on the type of pumpkin and size of the wedges or chunks.
- Transfer the pumpkin wedges to the serving platter, scatter crumbled goat cheese or feta cheese on top if you want, an extra drizzle of olive oil, and serve. I also like to serve it at room temperature without the cheese, just a platter of soft pumpkin wedges.
Notes
Wedges: cut medium-large wedges as they tend to shrink quite a bit after baking. If using smaller pumpkins, you might consider cutting the whole pumpkin into only 4 pieces.
Spices: It's good to add some ground cayenne or hot paprika if you want pumpkin with a kick. If going for a sweeter tone, add a pinch of ground cinnamon and nutmeg. It's always good to adjust recipes to your own taste whenever possible.
Olive oil substitutions: for roasting pumpkin wedges (or vegetables in general, really), you can use any type of oil, like sunflower or coconut oil. Or even melted butter.
Sweeter variation: you can also sprinkle a small amount of brown sugar or a light drizzle of maple syrup on top of the wedges before baking.
