Dinner in a Pumpkin

5 from 17 votes

Dinner in a Pumpkin is a hearty casserole cooked right inside a pumpkin! Perfect for serving on Halloween night before the kids go trick-or-treating.

Prep Time30

Cook Time1 30

Total Time2

Course: Dinner, Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Dinner in a Pumpkin, Pumpkin

Servings:

Calories: 497kcal

Author: Echo Blickenstaff

Ingredients

1 pumpkin medium
3 tablespoons butter
1 onion small, diced
1 cup fresh mushrooms sliced (canned mushrooms also work)
2 celery stalks diced
1 clove garlic minced
1 tablespoon dried sage
1 tablespoon dried thyme
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
8 ounces water chestnuts
salt and pepper
10 ounces cream of chicken soup
1/4 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon white vinegar
4 cups cooked rice white or brown

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil. Thoroughly wash and dry the outside of the pumpkin. Cut the top off the pumpkin and clean out the pulp and seeds. Place the pumpkin on the baking sheet. Save the top.
In a large skillet, sauté onion, celery, mushrooms, and garlic in butter. Add ground beef, sage, and thyme and cook until the beef is no longer pink. Drain the grease from the beef. Add salt, pepper, and water chestnuts.
In a large bowl, mix soup, brown sugar, vinegar, and soy sauce.
Add ground beef mixture and cooked rice to the bowl. Mix until everything is evenly coated with sauce. Empty bowl into the cleaned out pumpkin and replace pumpkin top. Bake for 1 hour on the lower rack of the oven, or on the rack where the pumpkin can be most centered in the oven.
After 1 hour and 15 minutes, remove the top and check the sides of the pumpkin for doneness. The outside of the pumpkin will turn a dark orange, and the inside of the pumpkin should be tender and easily scoop off the sides with a spoon.
If the inside of the pumpkin is still not fully cooked, bake for an additional 10-15 minutes. The cooking time will vary depending on the size of the pumpkin. Sometimes I've cooked the pumpkin as long as an hour and a half before it is ready.
Using hot pads, place the pumpkin onto a serving plate, remove the lid, and stir. Be sure to scoop off chunks of cooked pumpkin into the casserole as it is served. That's the best part!

Video

Notes

Don't throw away the seeds when you clean out your pumpkin! You can turn them into a yummy treat as well! Pumpkin seeds are packed with magnesium, protein, and zinc. You can toss them with butter and salt and roast them in the oven, or for more flavor, you can season them. This Sweet and Spicy Pumpkin Seeds recipe is my favorite!

Nutrition