I decided to make shepherd’s pie recently for our family and some friends – and one of my friends suggested putting it in a pumpkin! Apparently this is something that others I know have done, but I had never heard of it. But, you know me, if it’s unusual and quirky and delicious sounding, I’m up for it!

You can use whatever shepherd’s pie recipe you like (I tend to cook off-the-cuff, not measuring or anything – I think I had about 15 spices in mine!) but cooking in a pumpkin called for a little different strategy than a normal shepherd’s pie. Here are some info tidbits and tips for cooking it in a pumpkin:

– First cut out the top of the pumpkin, and clean out the guts. I found that a serrated melon ball scoop worked GREAT for this.

– Don’t cook it with the lid on top. I tried first cooking the pumpkin alone (unfilled) and leaving the lid on the pumpkin. After baking it at 400F for about half an hour, with a little water inside to steam it, I took it out to check on it – and the water inside was cold. So I took the lid off, and baked it for about another half hour at 450F with much better results.

– Once the pumpkin is started to be little more cooked (though not completely soft), use a fork to “fluff” up the sides of the pumpkin. You’ll get an effect similar to spaghetti squash. Do this all around the pumpkin so that pumpkin will be able to mix into the shepherd’s pie – but leave enough of the wall intact for the pumpkin to still be sturdy.

– Pour in the base of the shepherd’s pie mixture (I recommend having it a little more heavily seasoned than usual to balance with the pumpkin), and then top with mashed potatoes. Put back in the oven – if you have time to cook it longer at a lower temperature, the flavor will be better. Or if not, it will still be good, but the leftovers the next day will be better than the first meal, because it will have more time to meld together. Put cheese on top of the potatoes a few minutes before it comes out of the oven.

-Consume! Preferably with friends – it takes a lot of shepherd’s pie to fill a pumpkin, so it is a good autumnal meal when you have a lot of mouths to feed.

After doing this meal, it definitely made me curious to try cooking more foods in edible “bowls”. Have you ever done this? Or have any other ideas? Share them below! :)