Pumpkins are filled with Vitamin A and beta carotene. Beta Carotene is known to reduce the risk of cancer. Pumpkin also builds immunity in kids.
Surprisingly, I was never introduced to pumpkin from when I was a kid, so I had no idea how it tastes. I have seen it in Sambar and a few south Indian dishes, but I always refused it, because somewhere I knew it tastes sweet and couldn’t accept it in a savory dish.
Recently Pumpkins have been appearing so often in International cookery shows and most tinned baby foods have pumpkin. So I wanted to introduce pumpkin to my baby. But my mom says babies catch a cold eating pumpkin, you all need to recheck this. Taking her advice I added heating ingredients to both my recipes and *touch-wood* my baby did not catch a cold.
Sweet Pumkin Puree Recipe
- Pumkin Cubes- 1 cup
- Sugar or Powdered jaggery- 1tsp
- Cinnamon Powder- 1 pinch
- Warm water
Pumpkins are a little hard on the outside and it takes some effort to de-skin and chop cubes out of it. Pressure Cook it for 2-3 whistles. Now puree it in a blender with sugar/jaggery and cinnamon powder.
You can add warm water if it is thick.
Pumpkin Soup Recipe
- Pumpkin Cubes- 1 cup
- Moong Dal- 3 Tbsp
- Salt
- Hing
- Turmeric
Pressure cook all the ingredients and mash mildly, then strain out the juice. Your pumpkin soup is ready. If you’re worried about wastage see my Pumpkin Kootu recipe below: It was actually yummy not at all sweet.
Pumkin Kootu Recipe
Cook 1 cup Pumpkin and half cup moong dal in a cooker for 2-3 whistles. Grind coconut( few pieces), 2 green chillies, a pinch of ginger and coriander leaves in a blender. Add to the pumpkin mix and cook for 5 mins with salt.
Heat one tsp. oil in a small pan, add mustard seeds and curry leaves (optional) and pour this tadka into the pumpkin kootu.