Hello my loves,

People, it's pumpkin time! Yes, the sturdy stars of autumn and winter have made their entrée into the harvest for another year, and today I’m sharing one of my favourite recipes with you: whole roasted pumpkin stuffed with bacon and blue cheese.

I absolutely love roasting pumpkins whole. In the world of food-theatre, there’s not much that comes close to grandly placing a whole roasted pumpkin in the centre of the table, then removing the top to reveal a molten centre of oozy cheese and bacon goodness. It draws gasps of delight every time. Not that we cook to impress of course, but let’s face it: a little pumpkin showtime never hurt anyone. Any leftovers (including the skin) perform beautifully when blitzed into a soup. If you’re not a blue cheese fan you can sub it out with any other type of cheese.

And so my loves, on this grey and misty morning, I gift you my recipe for stuffed pumpkin extraordinaire, and my absolute best wishes for a beautiful weekend. No prizes for guessing what I’m doing i.e. NO PRIZES FOR GUESSING I’M KNITTING!!! I have so caught the knitting bug. I’m making slow and steady progress on a sweater for my beloved, and once you get your head around the confounding language of knitting patterns, it really it is the most enjoyable thing to do. Just perfect for inside days, ensconced in a knee rug, and gently fending off curious cats. Until next week my loves 💙.

Whole roasted pumpkin stuffed with bacon and blue cheese sauce

Serves 8-10, depending on the size of your pumpkin

Ingredients
One large, whole, handsome pumpkin
One medium brown onion, chopped
120g pasture-raised bacon
4 bay leaves
35 sage leaves (about two large sprigs)
2 tablespoons plain flour
50g butter
500ml milk
1⁄2 teaspoon of nutmeg
150g blue cheese
Salt and pepper 

Heat your oven to 220C. Chop your bacon and fry it in a large saucepan, adding a little olive oil if required to stop it sticking. Once it's turned opaque pink, add your onions, bay leaves, and 10g of the butter. Cook on a medium heat until the onions are soft but not coloured, then add the sage and the rest of the butter, and stir until the butter is melted. Add the flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 1-2 minutes. This will give you a thick paste called a roux, which ideally you do not want to brown (but if it does it’s fine). Add the milk in two batches, stirring very well on each addition, until it's all incorporated. It may go a bit lumpy at first, but just keep stirring till it’s smooth. Add the nutmeg, then cook the sauce on a medium heat, stirring frequently, until it thickens. Once it comes to the boil and is thickened, turn the heat right down and add your blue cheese. Stir with a vigorous arm to melt it through. Turn off the heat, season the sauce with salt and pepper, and set it aside while you tend to your pumpkin.

Slice the top off your pumpkin in one whole piece, so that it can be put back on to form a lid. Summon your x-ray vision to judge where the cavity starts, and try to slice just at the top of that. If you go too high, don't worry. You can cut any excess pumpkin at the top of the cavity away, but try not to interfere with the sides too much, as you want your lid to fit nicely back on. Use your hands or a spoon to scrape the seeds from the cavity.

Pour your sauce into the cavity, leaving about 1cm of space from the top, and put the top of your pumpkin back on. Place it in a roasting dish or tray that you're happy to serve it in, then bake it in the oven until the flesh feels tender when you insert a skewer through the skin. This could take anywhere from 1-2 hours depending on the size and density of your pumpkin, and the strength of your oven. If you're cooking for friends and it's ready early, it will sit happily in a low oven (80C) until you're ready for dinner. If you need the oven for other things, it'll likely hold its heat pretty well on your bench top, as it's so large and dense.

To serve, ferry your glorious pumpkin to the table, remove the top, then go in deep with a large spoon, scooping a combination of pumpkin flesh and rich cheese sauce onto waiting plates.

Love, Rachel xxx